HC Deb 24 April 1899 vol 70 cc389-405

Motion made, and Question proposed— That after this day, the several stages of the London Government Bill and the Finance Bill have precedence of all Orders of the Day and Notices of Motions on every day for which the Bills or either of them are appointed"—(The First Lord of the Treasury.)

THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. A. J. BALFOUR, Manchester, E.)

In making this Motion for a large portion of the time of the House, I think I may appeal to the judgment of every man acquainted with Parliamentary procedure to support the Government in the course which we propose. Everyone who has any Parliamentary experience knows that the principal Bill of the Session and the Budget are both Bills which ought to be proceeded with energetically if the House is to return a good account of its labours at the end of the Session. It is now the 24th of April, and not many weeks divide the House from the Whitsuntide holidays, and I think it is not unreasonable to ask the House to allow us to devote the greater part of the time that is left to the discussion of the two Bills which I have mentioned. Of course, in previous years when the Budget has been an uncontroversial Measure, such a course as I now propose has not been necessary; but honourable Gentlemen have taken care to convince the Government that such is not the case this year; and, that being so, they will be the last persons to object to the Government finding the necessary time to discuss a matter which, if left to us, we could pass with great rapidity and without trespassing on the time of private Members. With regard to the London Government Bill, I am told that there are already 40 pages of Amendments down; and I am far from supposing that the ingenuity of honourable Members has been exhausted, and that other Amendments will not be put down in the course of the discussion. Therefore, I ask the House to set to work on these two Bills and make progress with them before the Whitsuntide holidays are reached. With regard to the question put to me just now with regard to Wednesdays, I do not propose to take the next three Wednesdays, and I hope it may be possible to avoid taking the fourth and remaining Wednesday before the Whitsuntide holidays; but I make no pledge on that subject, although I hope to except that also, unless I am disappointed with the progress made with the Budget Bill and the London Government Bill. The Machinery Bill, which the honourable Gentleman has so much at heart, has already been the subject of a discussion in this House, and no new arguments can be deduced on that subject, and as everybody knows that no further discussion can take place, I trust this Motion, therefore, will be carried without a long Debate.

SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN (Stirling Burghs)

The demands made by the right honourable Gentleman on the time of private Members are only in keeping with previous demands this Session. I have not provided myself, as has been sometimes the practice in previous Sessions, with information in order to discover whether the 24th April contains any magic virtue in itself, and I think it is generally better to deal with the business of each year on its merits. In this case there are two Bills before us in regard to which the Government propose to go beyond their own time. The first is the London Government Bill, of the Amendments to which the right honourable Gentleman takes a view which, I think, they hardly deserve. I do not think the number of Amendments put down on the Paper is in any degree excessive.

THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY

I do not say that they are necessarily excessive.

SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN

Everyone knows the Bill entirely turns on details. We discussed it, and discussed the details on the Second Reading, and from that the House can judge that many of them are of the greatest importance. I can assure the right honourable Gentleman that I have not observed amongst the most ardent critics of the Measure any desire to prolong unduly discussion on its details. The right honourable Gentleman also grouped with this Bill another Bill, namely, the Budget Bill. I do not exactly see in the same clear light the necessity for extreme urgency of that Bill. Its importance, of course, could not be denied, but I am not able to see why it should be pushed forward by this unusual method. That is a thing I cannot now appreciate. The right honourable Gentleman, however, has considerably relieved the situation by his undertaking with regard to Wednesdays. The Motion and certain comments in the public Press led us to fear that the right honourable Gentleman intended to deal harshly with Wednesdays. It is always an unfair proceeding, and the one thing I especially dislike is that the Government should be led to picking and choosing in this matter. And when I saw there was an Amendment by one of my honourable Friends with regard to a particular Wednesday the very fact made me realise more clearly the danger involved if we did not obtain an explicit understanding on that matter. The right honourable Gentleman now says he is certainly not going to take the three Wednesdays that come first, and that after that he will not take Wednesdays at all unless he was compelled.

THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY

Up to Whitsuntide. After Whitsuntide there are always two Wednesdays left for the discussion of Bills. I was not dealing with the period after Whitsuntide.

SIR H CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN

With that explicit, understanding I do not think the House can have much to fear as to any partiality in the application of this Motion if it is carried. In these circumstances I do not see that we can offer any resistance to the Motion.

MR. J. LOWTHER (Kent, Isle of Thanet)

said the right honourable Gentleman the Leader of the Opposition held that no good object could be served by inquiring whether the 24th of April was a date which had any particular magic in it, but the right honourable Gentleman was apt to forget that the 24th of April is apt to become on occasions of this sort the 24th of March. He (Mr. Lowther) thought the House had a right to complain that the order of business was not settled fairly on definite lines, and that arrangements when come to by the House were not adhered to. It might or it might not be right for the Government to take the whole time of the House after the introduction of the Budget, but it ought to be settled and ought to be put in its proper place in the Standing Order of the House, and not taken by such a means as the Motion which had been moved. One of the first effects of this Motion would be to remove from the consideration of the House some questions of very great importance which were set down for tomorrow, the importance of one of which his right honourable Friend had himself admitted, namely, the question of Notices of Motion placed on the Order Book to prevent the discussion of matters of urgency under Standing Order 17. That was, of course, the sacred Order of all the orders of the House. His right honourable Friend asked the private Members to part with their privileges for the main part of the Session, and he had told them that no injury would be done, because where matters were of sufficient urgency and importance as to merit the immediate and special attention of the House, they could always be raised under Standing Order 17. He pointed out that that Order was the means whereby matters of real urgency could be discussed by the House of Commons, but he appeared to have forgotten that an honourable Member had only to put down a Motion—he had done it himself—to practically remove a Standing Order altogether. He always intended to put down a Motion when matters of urgency came forward, and his right honourable Friend could take it that no questions of urgency could be raised until this unsatisfactory position had been dealt with. Standing Order 17 being a mere mockery, honourable Members were placed in a position that they were asked now to give up every opportunity for the rest of the Session of raising any question, however urgent and important it might be from a national point of view. He thought it desirable that the House should enter a protest against this alteration of the proceedings. A proper Order ought to be carefully prepared and rigorously adhered to. He, for one, strongly objected to the proposal that had been made.

MR. DILLON (Mayo, E.)

desired to say a few words with regard to the proposal before the House from the point of view of the Irish representatives. He could not, for his part, see anything in the London Government Bill which should have necessitated the sacrifice of the time of the private Members. He desired, however, to protest strongly against the manner in which the Government dealt with Irish business. He thought the old practice of the House should be strictly adhered to, and that the practice of restricting Members to what might be termed the Ten Minutes Rule in important Measures should be abandoned. There was a Bill which the Secretary for Ireland proposed to bring in under that Ten Minutes Rule—the Irish Tithe Rent Charges Bill. That was a very important Measure, and he thought it was an abuse of the practice of the House to bring it in in such a way. If the Government required to take the time of the private Members, they ought, first of all, to use their own time in a proper manner.

Amendment proposed— At the end of the Question, to add the words 'except on Wednesday the 17th May."—(Mr. Strachey.)

MR. STRACHEY (Somerset, N.)

could see no reason why the Government should pick and choose which Wednesday it might be necessary for them to take. The House had been told by the right honourable Gentleman that it would be only the Wednesday before Whitsuntide that was in jeopardy. That was the day upon which the Rating of Machinery Bill would come up for discussion. It was a Measure which many Members on both sides of the House regarded as of very vital importance, and certainly of equal or greater importance than the Ecclesiastical Assessments (Scotland Bill) and the Scotland Liquor Traffic Bill, and he thought it very hard that they would not be able to discuss it. He therefore begged to move his Amendment.

THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY

I hope the honourable Member will not press his Amendment. I have already explained to the House the reason why we cannot give any pledge with regard to any of those Bills which come on on a Wednesday. The Machinery Rating Bill has been unfortunate enough to be put down on the last Wednesday before Whitsuntide, and consequently is in danger. The last thing that I wish to do is to minimise the importance of the Bill. But in any case all we can do is to have a discussion on it, because everybody knows that, however important it may be, it cannot be passed this Session.

Question proposed—

"That those words be there added."

Amendment proposed to the proposed Amendment—

"To leave out the words 'Wednesday the 17th May,' and add the word 'Wednesdays.'"— (Mr. Bryn Roberts.)

*MR. BRYN ROBERTS

was of opinion that it was monstrous that Wednesday should be taken by the Government at this early period of the Session. The Motion, if granted, would deprive private Members of all Wednesdays after Whitsuntide, and a Wednesday was the only day upon which private Members could make any progress whatever. He thought the action of the Government was strong when they took Tuesday so early in the Session, but to take Wednesdays was absolutely monstrous.

MR. D. A. THOMAS (Merthyr Tydvil)

seconded the Amendment.

Question put— That the words 'Wednesday the 17th May' stand part of the proposed Amendment.

The House divided: —Ayes 60; Noes 273.—(Division List No. 91.)

Hobhouse, Henry Marks, Harry H. Stevenson, Francis S.
Holland, Wm. H. (York, W. R.) Maxwell, Rt. Hn. Sir Herbt. E. Stirling-Maxwel1, Sir John M.
Houldsworth, Sir Wm. Henry Monk, Charles James Tennant, Harold John
Hezier, Hn. James Henry Cecil Murray, Chas. J. (Coventry) Warde, Lieut.-Col. C.E.(Kent)
Kitson, Sir James Northcote, Hn. Sir H. Stafford Welby, Lieut.-Col. A. C. E.
Knowles, Lees Pease, Sir Joseph W.(Durham) Wodehouse, Rt. Hn. E. R. (Bath)
Lawson, John Grant (Yorks) Pierpoint, Robert Wyndham-Quin, Major W. H.
Logan, John William Power, Patrick Joseph Young, Samuel (Cavan, East)
Lopes, Henry Yarde Buller Priestley, Sir W. O. (Edin.)
Lough, Thomas Redmond, John E.(Waterford) TELLEES FOR THE AYES—
Lowther, Rt. Hn. James(Kent) Russell, Gen. F.S. (Cheltenham) Mr. Strachey and Mr.
Macaleese, Daniel Scoble, Sir Richard Andrew Cawley.
McCalmont, Col. J.(Antrim, E.) Shaw, Chas. Edw. (Stafford)
M'Ghee, Richard Smith, Hn. W.F.D. (Strand)
AYES.
Baldwin, Alfred Boscawen, Arthur Griffith- Donelan, Captain A.
Banbury, Frederick George Bowles, Capt.H.F.(Middlesex) Duncombe, Hon. Hubert V.
Barlow, John Emmott Burns, John Folkestone, Viscount
Bathurst, Hn. Allen Benjamin Cochrane, Hon. Thos. H. A. E. Foster, Sir Walter (Derby Co.)
Beckett, Ernest William Colston, Chas. Edw.H.Athole Galloway, William Johnson.
Bentinck, Lord Henry C. Cripps, Charles Alfred Gordon, Hon. John Edward
Billson, Alfred Davitt, Michael Gunter, Colonel
Bond, Edward Dillon, John Hardy, Laurence
NOES.
Acland-Hood, Capt. Sir Alex. F. Cross, Herb. Shepherd(Bolton) Haldane, Richard Burdon
Allan, William (Gateshead) Chelsea, Viscount Hall, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles
Allen, W.(Newc.-under-Lyme) Clark, Dr. G. B.(Caithness-sh.) Halsey, Thomas Frederick
Allison, Robert Andrew Coddington, Sir William Hanson, Sir Reginald
Allsopp, Hon. George Coghill Douglas Harry Hare, Thomas Leigh
Anstruther, H. T. Cohen, Benjamin Louis Harwood, George
Ascroft, Robert Colville, John Heath, James
Asher, Alexander Cook, Fred. Lucas (Lambeth) Heaton, John Henniker
Ashmead-Bartlett, Sir Ellis Courtney, Rt. Hn. Leonard H. Hoare, Edw. Brodie(Hampst'd.)
Asquith, Rt. Hn. Herbert H. Cox, Irwin Edwd. B.(Harrow) Hoare, Samuel (Norwich)
Atkinson, Rt. Hon. John Cranbourne, Viscount Holland, Hn. Lionel R.(Bow)
Austin, Sir John (Yorksire) Crombie, John William Horniman, Frederick John
Austin, M. (Limerick, W.) Cruddas, William Donaldson Howard, Joseph
Bagot, Capt. Josceline FitzRoy Curzon, Viscount Hudson, George Bickersteth
Bailey, James (Walworth) Dalbiac, Colonel Philip Hugh Humphreys-Owen, Arthur C.
Baird, John George Alexander Dalrymple, Sir Charles Hutton, John (Yorks, N R.)
Baker, Sir John Digby, John K. D. Wingfield- Jacoby, James Alfred
Balcarres, Lord Dilke, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles Jeffreys, Arthur Frederick
Balfour, Rt. Hn. A.J.(Manch'r.) Dorington, Sir John Edward Johnson-Ferguson, Jabez Edw.
Balfour, Rt. Hn. G.W.(Leeds) Doughty George Johnston, William (Belfast)
Balfour, Rt. Hn. J. B. (Clackm.) Douglas, Rt. Hon. A. Akers Jolliffe, Hon. H. George
Barnes, Frederic Gorell Drage, Geoffrey Jones, David Brynmor(Swan.)
Barry, Rt. Hn A H Smith-(Hunts) Duckworth, James Jones, William(Carnarvonsh.)
Barry, Sir Fran. T.(Windsor) Dunn, Sir William Kay-Shuttleworth, Rt. Hn Sir U.
Bartley, George C. T. Elliot, Hn. A. Ralph Douglas Kearley, Hudson E.
Beach, Rt. Hn. Sir M.H.(Brist.) Ellis, John Edward Kennaway, Rt. Hn. Sir John H.
Bemrose, Sir Henry Howe Fardell, Sir T. George Kimber, Henry
Beresford, Lord Charles Farquharson, Dr. Robert King, Sir Henry Seymour
Bethell, Commander Fellowes, Hon. Ailwyn Edward Kinloch, Sir John G. Smyth
Biddulph, Michael Fenwick, Charles Labouchere, Henry
Bill, Charles Ferguson, R. C. Munro(Leith) Lafone, Alfred
Blundell, Colonel Henry Fergusson, Rt. HnSir J (Manc'r.) Lambert, George
Bolitho, Thomas Bedford Finch, George H. Langley, Batty
Bowles, T. Gibson(King's Lynn) Finlay, Sir Robert Bannatyne Laurie, Lieut.-General
Brodrick, Rt. Hon. St. John Firbank, Joseph Thomas Lea, Sir Thomas(Londonderry)
Brown, Alexander H. Fisher, William Hayes Lecky, Rt. Hn. William Ed. H.
Brunner, Sir John Tomlinson Fison, Frederick William Leese, Sir Joseph F (Accrington)
Buchanan, Thomas Ryburn FitzGerald, Sir Robt. Penrose- Leigh-Bennett, Henry Currie
Burt, Thomas Fitzmaurice, Lord Edmond Leighton, Stanley
Buxton, Sydney Charles Fletcher, Sir Henry Leng, Sir John
Caldwell, James Fowler, Rt. Hon. Sir Henry Leuty, Thomas Richmond
Cameron, Sir Charles(Glasgow) Fry, Lewis Loder, Gerald Walter Erskine
Campbell-Bannerman, Sir H Garfit, William Long, Rt. Hn. Walter(Liverp'l)
Carlile, William Walter Giles, Charles Tyrrell Lowe, Francis William
Carmichael, Sir T. D. Gibson- Gilliat, John Saunders Lowles, John
Cavendish, R. F. (N. Lancs.) Goddard, Daniel Ford Loyd, Archie Kirkman
Cavendish, V. C. W.(Derbysh.) Gold, Charles Lucas-Shadwell, William
Cayzer, Sir Charles William Goldsworthy, Major-General Lyell, Sir Leonard
Cecil, Evelyn (Hertford, East) Gorst, Rt. Hn. Sir John Eldon Macartney, W. G. Ellison
Cecil, Lord Hugh(Greenwich) Goschen, Rt. Hn GJ(St George's) McArthur, William(Cornwall)
Chaloner, Capt. R. G. W. Goschen, George J. (Sussex) McIver, Sir Lewis (Edin, W.)
Chamberlain, Rt. Hn. J.(Birm.) Goulding, Edward Alfred McKenna, Reginald
Chamberlain, J. Austen(Wor.) Gourley, Sir Edwd. Temperley McLeod, John
Channing, Francis Allston Graham, Henry Robert Maddison, Fred
Chaplin, Rt. Hon. Henry Gray, Ernest (West Ham) Maden, John Henry
Charrington, Spencer Gull, Sir Cameron Maple, Sir John Blundell
Mappin, Sir Frederick Thorpe Rentoul, James Alexander Thorburn, Walter
Mellor, Colonel (Lancashire) Richardson, J. (Durham) Tomlinson, Wm. Edw. Murray
Mendl, Sigismund Ferdinand Rickett, J. Compton Trevelyan, Charles Philips
Middlemore, J. Throgmorton Ridley, Rt. Hn. Sir Matthew W. Tritton, Charles Ernest
Monckton, Edward Philip Roberts, John H. (Denbighs.) Valentia, Viscount
Morgan, Hn. F.(Monm'thsh.) Robertson, Edmund (Dundee) Wallace, Robt. (Edinburgh)
Morgan, J. Lloyd(Carmarth'n.) Ritchie, Rt. Hn. C.Thompson Wallace, Robert (Perth)
Morton, Arthur H. A. (Deptfd.) Rothschild, Hn. Lionel Walter Walrond, Rt. Hon. Sir Wm. H.
Morton, Edw. J.C.(Devonport) Round, James Walton, J. Lawson (Leeds, S.)
Moulton, John Fletcher Royds, Clement Molyneux Walton, Joseph (Barnsley)
Murray, Rt HnA Graham(Bute) Rutherford, John Warner, ThomasCourtenay T.
Murray, Col. Wyndham(Bath) Samuel, Harry S. (Limehouse) Warr, Augustus Frederick
Mivers, William Henry Sandys, Lieut.-Col. Thos Myles Webster, R. G. (St. Pancras)
Newdigate, Francis Alexander. Savory, Sir Joseph Webster, Sir R.E.(I of Wight)
Nicholson, William Graham Seeley, Charles Hilton Wedderburn, Sir William
Nicol, Donald Ninian Sharpe, William Edward T. Weir, James Galloway
Norton, Capt. Cecil William Shaw, Thomas (Hawick B.) Wharton, Rt. Hn. John Lloyd
Nussey, Thomas Willans Simeon, Sir Barrington Williams, Jos. Powell (Birm.)
O'Conner, James(Wicklow, W) Sinclair, Capt. John(Ferfarsh.) Williams, Jos. Powell-(Birm.)
Oldroyd, Marl Smith Abel H.(Christchurch) Wills, Sir William Henry
Orr-Ewing, Charles Lindsay Smith, James Parker(Lanarks.) Wilson, Henry J.(York, W.R.)
Palmer, George W. (Reading) Smith, Samuel (Flint) Wilson, John (Govan)
Paulton, James Mellor Soames, Arthur Wellesley Wilson, J.W.(Worcestersh, N.)
Pease, Joseph A.(Northumb.) Spencer, Ernest Wilson-Todd, Wm. H.(Yorks.)
Pender, Sir James Spicer, Albert Wolff, Gustav Wilhelm
Perey, Earl Stanley, Edw. Jas. (Somerset) Woods, Samuel
Philipps, John Wynford Stanley, Henry M. (Lambeth) Wortley, Rt. Hn. C.B. Stuart-
Pickersgill, Edward Hare Stanley, Lord (Lancs.) Wyvill, Marmaduke D'Arey
Pilkington, Richard Steadman, William Charles Yerburgh, Robert Armstrong
Pirie, Duncan V. Stewart, Sir MarkJ. M'Taggart Young, Commander(Berks, E.)
Platt-Higgins, Frederick Stock, James Henry Younger, William
Powell, Sir Francis Sharp Stuart, James (Shoreditch)
Pretyman, Ernest George Sturt, Hon. Humphry Napier TELLERS FOR THE NOES— Mr. Bryn Roberts and Mr. Hedderwick.
Priestley, Briggs (Yorks.) Sullivan, Donal (Westmeath)
Purvis, Robert Talbot, Rt HnJG(Oxf'd Univ.)
Rankin, Sir, James Thomas, Alf.(Glamorgan, E.)
Redmond, William (Clare) Thomas, David A. (Merthyr)

question put— That the words 'except On Wednesdays' be added to the Resolution.

SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN

The position that the House is now in is that it has decided nothing, and that we should add these words to the Resolution so as to prevent the Government from taking Wednesday. In moving the Resolution, the right honourable Gentleman the First Lord of the Treasury distinctly said that the Government did not intend to take Wednesdays until after Whitsuntide.

THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY

I said that it was possible, but not probable that we might have to take Wednesday the 17th of May.

SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN

The right honourable Gentleman said he hoped he would not require to take any Wednesday, but it was quite pos- sible that under the exigencies of public business the Government might requite or might be compelled to take one. Would the right honourable Gentleman say whether there is any prospect of taking that one, because if he says that they would not take any Wednesday till after Whitsuntide, the whole question in dispute would fall to the ground.

THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY

We have a considerable amount of business before us on the two Bills—the London Government Bill and the Finance Bill—and I think we ought to make substantial progress before Whitsuntide without taking any Wednesday. But it is possible, and if there is any unforeseen delay—if the wheels of the machine move with unexpected slowness—that the Government may be driven to take the last Wednesday before Whitsuntide. I promised that the first three Wednesdays should be spared under any circumstances. I hope to spare them all, but it is just possible that we may have to take the last one.

Question— That the words 'except on Wednesdays' be added to the Question. The House Divided: —Ayes 128; Noes 218. —(Division List No. 92.)

AYES.
Allan, William (Gateshead) Horniman, Frederick John Philipps John Wyndford
Allison, Robert Andrew Humphreys-Owen, Arthur C. Pickersgill, Edward Hare
Asher, Alexander Jacoby, James Alfred Pirie, Duncan V.
Ashton, Thomas Gair Johnson-Ferguson, Jabez E. Power, Patrick Joseph
Asquith, Rt. Hon. Herbert H. Jones, David Brynmor(Swns'a) Priestley, Briggs (Yorks.)
Austin, Sir John (Yorkshire) Jones, William(Carnarvonsh.) Redmond, William (Clare)
Baker, Sir John Kay-Shuttleworth, RtHnSirU. Reid, Sir Robert Threshie
Balfour, Rt. Hn. J.B.(Clackm.) Kearley, Hudson E. Richardson, J. (Durham)
Barlow, John Emmott Kinloch, Sir John G. Smyth Rickett, J. Compton
Billson, Alfred Kitson, Sir James Roberts, John H. (Denbighs.)
Buchanan, Thomas Ryburn Labouchere, Henry Robertson, Herbert(Hackney)
Burns, John Lambert, George Shaw, Charles E. (Stafford)
Burt, Thomas Langley, Batty Shaw, Thomas (Hawick B.)
Buxton, Sydney Charles Lea, Sir Thomas(Londonderry) Sinclair, Capt. John(Forfarsh.)
Caldwell, James Leese, Sir Joseph F.(Accringt'n) Smith, Samuel (Flint)
Cameron, SirCharles(Glasgow) Leng, Sir John Soames, Arthur Wellesley
Campbell-Bennerman, Sir H. Leuty, Thomas Richmond Spicer, Albert
Carmichael, Sir T. D. Gibson- Lewis, John Herbert Stanhope, Hon. Philip J.
Cawley, Frederick Lloyd-George, David Steadman, William Charles
Channing, Francis Allston Logan, John William Stevenson, Francis S.
Clark, Dr. G. B.(Caithness-sh.) Lough, Thomas Strachey, Edward
Colville, John Lyell, Sir Leonard Stuart, James (Shoreditch)
Courtney, Rt. Hn. Leonard H. Macaleese Daniel Sullivan, Donal (Westmeath)
Crombie, John William McDonnell, Dr MA (Queen's Co.) Tennant, Harold John
Davitt, Michael McArthur, William(Cornwall) Thomas, A. (Glamorgan, E.)
Dilke, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles M'Ghee, Richard Thomas, David A. (Merthyr)
Dillon, John McLeod, John Trevelyan, Charles Philips
Donelan, Captain A. Maddison, Fred. Wallace, Robert (Edinburgh)
Duckworth, James Maden, John Henry Wallace, Robert (Perth)
Dunn, Sir William Mappin, Sir Frederick Thorpe Walton, J. Lawson (Leeds, S.)
Ellis, John Edward Marks, Harry H. Walton, Joseph (Barnsley)
Farquharson, Dr. Robert Mendl, Sigismund Ferdinand Warner, Thomas Courtenay T.
Fenwick, Charles Morgan,J. Lloyd(Carmarthen) Wedderburn, Sir William
Ferguson, R. C. Munro (Leith) Morton, E. J. C. (Devonport) Weir, James Galloway
Fitzmaurice, Lord Edmond Moulton, John Fletcher Williams, John Carvell(Notts)
Foster, Sir Walter (Derby Co.) Norton, Captain Cecil William Wills, Sir William Henry
Fowler, Rt. Hon. Sir Henry Nussey, Thomas Willans Wilson, Henry J.(York, W.R.)
Gladstone, Rt. Hon. Herbert J. O'Connor, James(Wicklow, W.) Wilson, John (Govan)
Goddard, Daniel Ford O'Connor, T. P. (Liverpool) Woods, Samuel
Gold, Charles. Oldroyd, Mark Young, Samuel (Cavan, E.)
Haldane, Richard Burdon Palmer, George W.(Reading)
Harwood, George Paulton, James Mellor TELLERS FOR THE AYES— Mr. Bryn Roberts and Mr. Hedderwick
Hobhouse, Henry Pease, Joseph A.(Northumb.)
Holland, W.H.(York, W.R.) Pease, Sir Joseph W.(Durham)
NOES.
Acland-Hood, Capt. Sir Alex. F. Beckett, Ernest William Cavendish, R. F. (N. Lancs.)
Allsopp, Hon. George Bemrose, Sir Henry Howe Cavendish, V.C.W.(Derbysh.)
Ascroft, Robert Bentinck, Lord Henry C. Cayzer, Sir Charles William
Ashmead-Bartlett, Sir Ellis Beresford, Lord Charles Cecil, Evelyn(Hertford, East)
Atkinson, Rt. Hon. John Bethell, Commander Cecil, Lord Hugh(Greenwich)
Bagot, Capt. Josceline FitzRoy Biddulph, Michael Chaloner, Capt. R. G. W.
Bailey, James (Walworth) Bill, Charles Chamberlain, Rt. Hn. J.(Birm.)
Baird, John George Alexander Blundell, Colonel Henry Chamberlain, J Austen(Worc'r)
Baldwin, Alfred Bolitho, Thomas Bedford Chaplin, Rt. Hon. Henry
Balfour, Rt. Hn. A.J.(Manc'r) Bond, Edward Charrington, Spencer
Balfour, Rt. Hn. G.W.(Leeds) Boscawen, Arthur Griffith- Chelsea, Viscount
Banbury, Frederick George Bowles, Capt. H.F.(Middlesex) Cochrane, Hon. Thos. H.A.E.
Barnes, Frederic Gorell Bowles, T. Gibson(King'sLynn) Coddington, Sir William
Barry, Rt. Hn A H Smith(Hunts.) Brassey, Albert Coghill, Douglas Harry
Barry, SirFrancisT.(Windsor) Brodrick, Rt. Hon. St. John Cohen, Benjamin Louis
Barton, Dunbar Plunkett Brown, Alexander H. Colston, Chas. E. H. Athole
Bathurst, Hn. Allen Benjamin Burdett-Coutts, W. Cook, Fred. Lucas (Lambeth)
Beach, Rt HnSirM. H. (Bristol) Carlile, William Walter Cox, Irwin Edward B.(Harrow)
Cranborne, Viscount Howard, Joseph Quilter, Sir Cuthbert
Cripps, Charles Alfred Hubbard, Hon. Evelyn Rankin, Sir James
Cross, Herb. Shepherd(Bolton) Hudson, George Bickersteth Rentoul, James Alexander
Cruddas, William Donaldson Hutton, John (Yorks., N.R.) Richards, Henry Charles
Curzon, Viscount Jebb, Richard Claverhouse Ridley, Rt. Hn. Sir Mathew W.
Dalbiac, Colonel Philip Hugh Jeffreys, Arthur Frederick Ritchie, Rt. Hn Chas. Thomson
Dalrymple, Sir Charles Jessel, Capt. Herbert Merton Rothschild, Hn. Lionel Walter
Digby, John K. D. Wingfield- Johnston, William (Belfast) Round, James
Dorington, Sir John Edward Joliffe, Hon. H. George Royds, Clement Molyneux
Doughty, George Kennaway, Rt. Hn. Sir John H. Russell, Gen. F.S.(Cheltenham)
Douglas, Rt. Hon. A. Akers- Kimber, Henry Russell, T. W. (Tyrone)
Drage, Geoffrey King, Sir Henry Seymour Rutherford, John
Duncombe, Hon. Hubert, V. Knowles, Lees Samuel, Harry S. (Limehouse)
Elliot, Hon. A. Ralph Douglas Lafone, Alfred Sandys, Lieut.-Col. Thos. Myles
Fardell, Sir T. George Laurie, Lieut.-General Sassoon, Sir Edward Albert
Fellowes, Hon. Ailwyn Edward Lawson, John Grant (Yorks) Savory, Sir Joseph
Fergusson, Rt. HnSirJ. (Manc'r Lecky, Rt. Hn. William E. H. Seeley, Charles Hilton
Finch, George H Leigh-Bennett, Henry Currie Sharpe, William Edward T.
Finlay, Sir Robert Bannatyne Leighton, Stanley Simeon, Sir Barrington
Firbank, Joseph Thomas Lockwood, Lieut.-Col. A. R. Smith, Abel H.(Christchurch)
Fisher, William Hayes Loder, Gerald Walter Erskine Smith, James Parker(Lanarks.)
Fison, Frederick William Long, Rt. Hn. W. (Liverpool) Smith, Hon. W.F.D.(Strand)
FitzGerald, Sir Robt. Penrose- Lopes, Henry Yarde Buller Spencer, Ernest
Flannery, Sir Fortescue Lowe, Francis William Stanley, Edw. Jas.(Somerset)
Fletcher, Sir Henry Lowles, John Stanley, Henry M. (Lambeth)
Flower, Ernest Loyd, Archie Kirkman Stanley, Lord (Lanes.)
Folkestone, Viscount Lucas-Shadwell, William Stewart, Sir M. J. M'Taggart
Fry, Lewis Macartney, W, G. Ellison Stirling-Maxwell, Sir John M.
Galloway, William Johnson McCalmont, Col. J. (Antrim, E.) Stock, James Henry
Garfit, William McIver, Sir Lewis (Edin, W.) Sturt, Hon. Humphry Napier
Giles, Charles Tyrrell Maple, Sir John Blundell Talbot, Rt. Hn. J.G.(Oxf'd Un.)
Gilliat, John Saunders Martin, Richard Biddulph Thorburn, Walter
Goldsworthy, Major-General Mellor, Colonel (Lancashire) Tomlinson, Wm. Edw. Murray
Gordon, Hon. John Edward Middlemore, J. Throgmorton Tritton, Charles Ernest
Gorst, Rt. Hn. Sir John Eldon Monckton, Edward Philip Valentia, Viscount
Goschen, Rt. HnG. J. (St. Geo's) Monk, Charles James Warde, Lieut.-Col. C. E. (Kent)
Goschen, George J. (Sussex) Morgan, Hn Fred(Monm'thsh.) Warr, Augustus Frederick
Goulding, Edward Alfred Morton, A. H. A. (Deptford) Webster, R. G. (St. Pancras)
Gourley, Sir Edwd. Temperley Murray, Rt. HnAGraham(Bute) Webster, Sir R.E.(I of Wight)
Graham, Henry Robert Murray, Col. Wyndham(Bath) Welby, Lieut.-Col. A. C. E.
Green, Walford D.(Wednesb'y) Myers, William Henry Wharton, Rt. Hn. John Lloyd
Greene, W. Raymond-(Cambs.) Newdigate, Francis Alexander Williams, J. Powell- (Birm.)
Gull, Sir Cameron Nicholson, William Graham Wilson, J.W.(Worcestersh. N.)
Gunter, Colonel Nicol, Donald Ninian Wilson-Todd, Wm. H. (Yorks.)
Hall, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles Northcote, Hon. Sir H. Stafford Wodehouse, Rt. HnE. R. (Bath)
Halsey, Thomas Frederick Orr-Ewing, Charles Lindsay Wolff, Gustav Wilhelm
Hamilton, Rt. Hn. Lord George Pender, Sir James Wortley, Rt. Hon. C. B. Stuart-
Hanson, Sir Reginald Percy, Earl Wyndham-Quin, Major W.H.
Hardy, Laurence Pierpoint, Robert Wyvill, Marmaduke D'Arcy
Hare, Thomas Leigh Pinkerton, John Yerburgh, Robert Armstrong
Heath, James Platt-Higgins, Frederick Young, Commander(Berks, E.)
Heaton, John Henniker Powell, Sir Francis Sharp Younger, William
Hoare, Edw. B. (Hampstead) Pretyman, Ernest George
Hoare, Samuel (Norwich) Priestley, Sir W. O. (Edin.) TELLERS FOR THE NOES— Sir William Walrond and Mr. Anstruther.
Holland, Hon. Lionel E. (Bow) Purvis, Robert
Houldsworth, Sir Wm. Henry Pym, C. Guy

Main Question put— That after this day, the several stages of the London Government Bill and the Finance Bill have precedence of all Orders of the Day and Notices of Motions on every day for which the Bills or either of them are appointed." — (Mr. Balfour.)

The House divided: —Ayes 262; Noes 88.—(Division List No. 93.)

Ordered, That, after this day, the several stages of the London Government Bill and the Finance Bill have precedence of all Orders of the Day and Notices of Motions on every day for which the Bills or either of them are appointed.