HC Deb 08 August 1901 vol 99 cc159-65

6. Motion made, and Question put, "That a sum, not exceeding £926,905, be granted to His Majesty to defray the Charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of March, 1902, for Expenditure in respect of the following Services included in Class V. of the Estimates for Civil Services, viz.:—

£
2. Uganda, Central and East Africa Protectorates, etc. 210,049
3. Colonial Services 308,006
4. Cyprus, Grant in Aid 1,000
5. Subsidies to Telegraph Companies 27,850
7. Treasury Chest Fund 305,000
8. Loan to Wuchang Viceroy 75,000
£926,905

MR. DILLON

rose to a point of order. He drew attention to the fact that in this Vote were included two Votes that were not rightly included under the new rule, a Supplementary Vote by way of loan to the Viceroy of Wu-chang and also the Treasury Chest Fund, Votes of a character in respect to which the First Lord of the Treasury gave a pledge two years ago that they should not be included in the general closure.

*THE CHAIRMAN

A pledge given by a Minister does not in any way bind me. I do not think the hon. Member has raised his point of order on a sure foundation. The rule is— Provided always that any additional Estimate for any new service or matter not included in the original Estimate of the year shall be submitted for consideration two clear days before the Committee is closed. I would like not to give an opinion with regard to the Treasury Chest Fund, but the loan to the Wu-chang Viceroy is an additional Estimate not included in the original Estimate, and then arose the question in my mind, Has it been submitted for consideration in Committee of Supply? I confess for some time I had considerable doubt, but I may say I have consulted the Speaker on the matter, and he and I are now agreed that the Vote was submitted for consideration when it was put down as the second Vote on the Paper. "Submitted for consideration" does not mean "proposed from the Chair." That is the view of the Speaker, and that view I entirely share. "Proposed from the Chair" is, of course, a well-known expression, which has been frequently used in the Standing Orders and Rules of this House, but "submitted for consideration" the Speaker holds, and I hold, is a condition that has been fulfilled by the matter being made an effective Supply Vote on a particular day more than two days before the Committee closed.

MR. DILLON

appealed to the First Lord of the Treasury to say whether that was an observance of the pledge which he had given to the House upon a former occasion.

*THE CHAIRMAN

The hon. Member is entitled to address me on a point of order, but no debate is permitted. I say that both last year and the year before there are precedents in this matter. Last year there was a Vote for Local Taxation (Ireland), a new Vote, and an additional Estimate for a new matter not in the original Estimate. It was put down for consideration in Supply two days before the closure day, but it was not discussed. The year before—1899—exactly the same thing occurred with a Vote for the Paris Exhibition. These are two precedents on all fours with the present Votes as to which the hon. Member has raised the point of order. In the face of these two precedents, I hold that the condition has been complied with in this case.

MR. DILLON

submitted that this point was never raised before, and if that was so, he contended that the cases which the Chairman had quoted had no bearing on the point of order. He respectfully submitted to the Chairman that it was not in accordance with either the letter ro the spirit of the rule that a Vote which had never been submitted to the Committee and which the Committee of Supply had had no opportunity whatever of discussing should be included under the closure rule in the face of the proviso he had quoted. He intended to take an early opportunity of reminding the First Lord of the Treasury of his pledge.

MR. SWIFT MACNEILL (Donegal, S.)

, upon a point of order, contended that "submitted for consideration" did not mean that a certain motion had been simply put upon the Notice Paper, for that could have no practical bearing on the point. [Ministerial cries of "Oh, oh!"] He was not speaking to hon. Gentlemen opposite, who were not intelligent enough to understand him, but he was addressing the Chairman upon a point of order. He wished to remind the Chairman of what ought to be within the knowledge of every hon. member of the House who was acquainted with Parliamentary procedure, that this rule with regard to notice papers and the printing of notices was a very modern innovation indeed. It would be utterly impossible to suggest—

*THE CHAIRMAN

I am afraid I must ask the hon. Member to limit his remarks simply to his point of order, for he is not entitled to make a speech.

MR. SWIFT MACNEILL

said he would endeavour to do so if the Chairman would restrain the interruptions of hon. Gentlemen opposite. He wished to point out that these printed notices were modern innovations.

*THE CHAIRMAN

That is not relevant to the point of order. May I be allowed to point out that if the hon. Member were in my position he might give a different ruling, but it devolves upon me to decide what these words mean. I have given my decision after consulting the highest authority in the House, and I do not really think that there is anything more to discuss upon this question.

MR. SWIFT MACNEILL

, who was greeted with loud Ministerial cries of "Order, order!" said he again submitted that it was utterly impossible for any order or for any judgment to be based upon the Orders of the Day, because the Orders of the Day were mere matters of convenience, and were not pertinent to the legislation of this House. They were merely a modern innovation simply for the convenience of the House.

The Committee divided:—Ayes, 242; Noes, 139. (Division List No. 426.)

AYES.
Acland-Hood, Capt. Sir Alex. F. Burdett-Coutts, W. Doxford, Sir William Theodore
Agg-Gardner, James Tynte Butcher, John George Duke, Henry Edward
Agnew, Sir Andrew Noel Carlile, William Walter Durning-Lawrence, Sir Edwin
Arkwright, John Stanhope Carson, Rt. Hon. Sir Edw. H. Dyke, Rt. Hn. Sir William Hart
Arnold-Forster, Hugh O. Cavendish, V. C. W. (Derbyshire Fellowes, Hon. Ailwyn Edward
Arrol, Sir William Cayzer, Sir Charles William Fergusson, Rt. Hn. Sir J. (Manc'r
Atkinson, Rt. Hon. John Cecil, Evelyn (Aston Manor) Fielden, Edward Brocklehurst
Bagot, Capt. Josceline FitzRoy Chamberlain, Rt. Hon. J. (Birm. Finch, George H.
Balcarres, Lord Chamberlain, J. Austen (Worc'r) Finlay, Sir Robert Bannatyne
Balfour, Rt. Hon. A. J. (Manch'r) Chapman, Edward Firbank, Joseph Thomas
Balfour, Capt. C. B. (Hornsey) Charrington, Spencer Fisher, William Hayes
Balfour, Rt. Hn Gerald W. (Leeds Clare, Octavius Leigh Fison, Frederick William
Balfour, Kenneth R. (Christch. Cochrane, Hon. Thos. H. A. E. Fitroy, Hon. Edward Algernon
Banbury, Frederick George Coghill, Douglas Harry Flower, Ernest
Bathurst, Hon. Allen Benjamin Cohen, Benjamin Louis Forster, Henry William
Beach, Rt. Hn. Sir Michael Hicks Collings, Rt. Hon. Jesse Foster, Sir Michael (Lond. Univ.
Bentinck, Lord Henry C. Colomb, Sir John Charles Ready Foster, Philip S. (Warwick, S. W.
Bignold, Arthur Compton, Lord Alwyne Gardner, Ernest
Bigwood, James Corbett, A. Cameron (Glasgow) Garfit, William
Bill, Charles Corbett, T. L. (Down, North) Godson, Sir Augustus Frederick
Blundell, Colonel Henry Cox, Irwin Edward Bainbridge Gordon, Hn. J. E. (Elgin & Nairn)
Bond, Edward Cranborne, Viscount Gordon, J. (Londonderry, S.)
Boscawen, Arthur Griffith- Crossley, Sir Savile Gordon, Maj Evans- (T'rH'mlets
Bousfield, William Robert Davenport, William Bromley- Gore, Hn G. R. C. Ormsby- (Salop
Bowles, Capt. H. F. (Middlesex) Davies, Sir Horatio D. (Chatham Gore, Hon. S. F. Ormsby- (Linc.)
Brand, Hon. Arthur G. Denny, Colonel Gorst, Rt. Hon. Sir John Eldon
Brassey, Albert Dickson, Charles Scott Goschen, Hon. George Joachim
Brown, Alexander H. (Shropsh.) Dickson-Poynder, Sir John P. Goulding, Edward Alfred
Bull, William James Disraeli, Coningsby Ralph Greene, Henry D. (Shrewsbury)
Bullard, Sir Harry Douglas, Rt. Hon. A. Akers- Greene, W. Raymond- (Cambs.)
Gretton, John Maconochie, A. W. Robertson, Herbert (Hackney)
Greville, Hon. Ronald M'Arthur, Charles (Liverpool) Rolleston, Sir John F. L.
Groves, James Grimble M'Calmont, Col. J. (Antrim, E.) Ropner, Colonel Robert
Hain, Edward M'Killop, James (Stirlingshire Round, James
Haldane, Richard Burdon Majendie, James A. H. Royds, Clement Molyneux
Hall, Edward Marshall Maple, Sir John Blundell Rutherford, John
Hamilton, Rt. Hn. Lord G. (Mid.) Massey-Mainwaring, Hn. W. E. Sackville, Col. S. G. Stopford-
Hamilton, Marq of (L'nd'nderry Melville, Beresford Valentine Sadler, Col. Samuel Alexander
Hanbury, Rt. Hn. Robert W. Middlemore, John Throgmorton Sandys, Lieut.-Col. Thos. Myles
Harris, Frederick Leverton Mildmay, Francis Bingham Sassoon, Sir Edward Albert
Haslett, Sir James Horner Molesworth, Sir Lewis Scott, Sir S. (Marylebone, W.)
Hay, Hon. Claude George Montagu, G. (Huntingdon) Seton-Karr, Henry
Heath, Arthur H. (Hanley) Moon, Edward Robert Pacy Sharpe, William Edward T.
Heath, James (Staffords. N. W Moore, William (Antrim, N.) Sinclair, Louis (Romford)
Heaton, John Henniker More, Robt. Jasper (Shropshire) Skewes-Cox, Thomas
Henderson, Alexander Morgan, David J. (Walthamstow Smith, Abel H. (Hertford, East)
Hermon-Hodge, Robert T. Morrell, George Herbert Smith, H C (North'mb. Tyneside
Hogg, Lindsay Morris, Hon. Martin Henry F. Smith, James Parker (Lanarks.)
Hope, J. E. (Sheffield Brightside) Morton, Arthur H. A. (Deptford) Smith, Hon. W. F. D. (Strand)
Hornby, Sir William Henry Mount, William Arthur Spear, John Ward
Hoult, Joseph Muntz, Philip A. Spencer, Ernest (W. Bromwich
Houston, Robert Paterson Murray, Rt Hn A. Graham (Bute Stanley, Hon Arthur (Ormskirk
Howard, J. (Midd., Tottenham) Murray, Charles J. (Coventry) Stanley, Edward Jas. (Somerset)
Hozier, Hn. James Henry Cecil Myers, William Henry Stanley, Lord (Lancs.)
Hudson, George Bickersteth Nicol, Donald Ninian Stirling-Maxwell, Sir John M.
Jackson, Rt. Hn. Wm. Lawies O'Neill, Hon. Robert Torrens Stone, Sir Benjamin
Jeffreys, Arthur Frederick Palmer, Walter (Salisbury) Strutt, Hon. Charles Hedley
Johnston, William (Belfast) Parker, Gilbert Sturt, Hon. Humphry Napier
Johnstone, Heywood (Sussex) Paulton, James Mellor Talbot, Lord E. (Chichester)
Kenyon, Hn. G. T. (Denbigh) Peel, Hn. Wm. Robert Wellesley Thornton, Percy M.
Keswick, William Pemberton, John S. G. Tollemache, Henry James
Kimber, Henry Penn, John Tomlinson, Wm. Edw. Murray
Lambton, Hon. Frederick W. Pierpoint, Robert Tritton, Charles Ernest
Law, Andrew Bonar Pilkington, Lieut.-Col. Richard Tufnell, Lieut.-Col. Edward
Lawrence, Wm. L. (Liverpool) Platt-Higgins, Frederick Valentia, Viscount
Lawson, John Grant Plummer, Walter R. Vincent, Sir Edgar (Exeter)
Lee, Arthur H. (Hants, Fareham Powell, Sir Francis Sharp Walker, Col. William Hall
Legge, Col. Hon. Heneage Pretyman, Ernest George Webb, Colonel William George
Leigh-Bennett, Henry Currie Pryce-Jones, Lt.-Col. Edward Welby, Sir Charles G. E. (Notts.)
Leveson-Cower, Fredk. N. S. Purvis, Robert Whiteley, H. (Ashton-un.-Lyne
Loder, Gerald Walter Erskine Pym, C. Guy Whitmore, Charles Algernon
Long, Col. Charles W. (Evesham Randles, John S. Williams, Colonel R. (Dorset)
Long, Rt. Hn. Walter (Bristol, S.) Rankin, Sir James Williams, Rt Hn J Powell- (Birm.
Lonsdale, John Brownlee Rasch, Major Frederic Carne Wills, Sir Frederick
Lowe, Francis William Reid, James (Greenock) Wilson, A. Stanley (Yorks., E. R.)
Lowther, C. (Cumb., Eskdale) Remnant, James Farquharson Wilson, J. W. (Worcestersh., N.)
Loyd, Archie Kirkman Renshaw, Charles Bine Wilson-Todd, Wm. H. (Yorks.)
Lucas, Reginald J. (Portsmouth Rentoul, James Alexander Wodehouse, Rt. Hn. E. R. (Bath)
Lyttelton, Hon. Alfred Renwick, George Wyndham, Rt. Hon. George
Macartney, Rt. Hn. W. G. Ellison Ridley, Hon. M. W. (Stalybridge) TELLERS FOR THE AYES.—Sir William Walrond and Mr. Anstruther.
Macdona, John Cumming Ridley, S. Forde (Bethnal Green)
MacIver, David (Liverpool) Ritchie, Rt. Hon. Chas. Thomson
NOES.
Abraham, William (Cork, N. E.) Campbell, John (Armagh, S.) Donelan, Captain A.
Ambrose, Robert Carvill, Patrick Geo. Hamilton Doogan, P. C.
Asher, Alexander Cawley, Frederick Duffy, William J.
Ashton, Thomas Gair Channing, Francis Allston Elibank, Master of
Barry, E. (Cork, S.) Clancy, John Joseph Emmott, Alfred
Bayley, Thomas (Derbyshire) Cogan, Denis J. Esmonde, Sir Thomas
Bell, Richard Colville, John Fenwick, Charles
Boland, John Condon, Thomas Joseph Field, William
Bolton, Thomas Dolling Crean, Eugene Flavin, Michael Joseph
Boyle, James Crombie, John William Flynn, James Christopher
Brigg, John Cullinan, J. Foster, Sir Walter (Derby Co.)
Broadhurst, Henry Daly, James Gilhooly, James
Burke, E. Haviland- Dalziel, James Henry Grant, Corrie
Burns, John Davies, Alfred (Carmarthen) Griffith, Ellis J.
Burt, Thomas Davies, M. Vaughan- (Cardigan Gurdon, Sir W. Brampton
Caine, William Sproston Delany, William Hammond, John
Caldwell, James Dilke, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles Hayden, John Patrick
Cameron, Robert Dillon, John Hayne, Rt. Hon. Charles Seale-
Hayter, Rt. Hon. Sir Arthur D. Moss, Samuel Robson, William Snowdon)
Healy, Timothy Michael Murnaghan, George Roche, John
Holland, William Henry Murphy, John Roe, Sir Thomas
Horniman, Frederick John Nannetti, Joseph P. Samuel, S. M. (Whitechapel)
Hutton, Alfred E. (Morley) Nolan, Col. J. P. (Galway, N.) Sheehan, Daniel Daniel
Jameson, Major J. Eustace Nolan, Joseph (Louth, South) Shipman, Dr. John G.
Jones, David Brynmor (Swans'a Norman, Henry Soares, Ernest J.
Jones, William (Carnarvonshire Nussey, Thomas Willans Spencer, Rt Hn. C. R. (Northants
Jordan, Jeremiah O'Brien, K. (Tipperary, Mid.) Sullivan, Donald
Joyce, Michael O'Brien, Patrick (Kilkenny) Taylor, Theodore Cooke
Kearley, Hudson E. O'Brien, P. J. (Tipperary, N.) Tennant, Harold John
Kennedy, Patrick James O'Connor, J. (Wicklow, W.) Thompson, Dr. E C (Monagh'n, N
Lambert, George O'Connor, T. P. (Liverpool) Thomson, F. W. (York, W. R.)
Layland-Barratt, Francis O'Donnell, John (Mayo, S.) Ure, Alexander
Leamy, Edmund O'Donnell, T. (Kerry, W.) Wallace, Robert
Leigh, Sir Joseph O'Dowd, John Walton, Joseph (Barnsley)
Levy, Maurice O' Kelly, Conor (Mayo, N.) Warner, Thomas Courtenay T.
Lloyd-George, David O'Kelly, J. (Roscommon, N.) Weir, James Galloway
Lough, Thomas O'Malley, William White, Luke (York, E. R.)
Lundon, W. O'Mara, James White, Patrick (Meath, North)
MacDonnell, Dr. Mark A. O'Shaughnessy, P. J. Whiteley, George (York, W. R.)
Macnamara, Dr. Thomas J. O'Shee, James John Whittaker, Thomas Palmer
MacNeill, John Gordon Swift Partington, Oswald Williams, Osmond (Merioneth)
M'Dermott, Patrick Pirie, Duncan V. Wilson, Henry J. (York, W. R.)
M'Fadden, Edward Power, Patrick Joseph Woodhouse, Sir J T. (Huddersf'd
M'Govern, T. Reddy, M.
M'Kenna, Reginald Redmond, John E. (Waterford TELLERS FOR THE NOES—Mr. D. A. Thomas and Mr. Whitley.
Mansfield, Horace Rendall Redmond, William (Clare)
Morgan, J. L. (Carmarthen) Rickett, J. Compton
Morton, E. J. C. (Devonport) Roberts, John H. (Denbighs.
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