§ MR. A. J. BALFOURasked if the Prime Minister could so re-arrange the business of the House for Tuesday that the motion for the proposed grant to Lord Cromer might be taken as the first Order of the day. He believed it was without precedent that a motion of great importance, brought forward in consequence of a Royal message, should be taken otherwise than as the first Order. There would be a corresponding Motion in the House of Lords, and as the Finance Bill was assumed to have precedence over all other Bills he was afraid it must come first in the exceptional circumstances.
§ SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMANdid not think he could depart from the arrangement which had been arrived at. There would be a corresponding Motion relating to Lord Cromer's grant in the 500 House of Lords, and therefore the Government could not postpone the Motion in the Commons. The Finance Bill was assumed to take precedence of all other measures, and he was afraid it must be taken first on Tuesday.
§ MR. WILLIAM REDMONDasked at what hour the Motion was likely to be reached.
§ SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMANdid not think the discussion on the Finance Bill would take very long, and therefore the Motion should be reached at an early period of the evening.
§ MR. SWIFT MACNEILLasked whether, as the grant to Lord Cromer was a money matter, the Motion concurring in the grant should not be deferred in the House of Lords until the House of Commons had come to a decision on the question. This was done in the case of the grant to Lord Kitchener in 1899.
§ MR. SPEAKERThe hon. Member is exceeding the limits of a Question.
§ MR. SWIFT MACNEILLThen, may I address the Question to you, Sir?
§ MR. SPEAKERI have no control over the House of Lords.
§ SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMANpointed out that the Government were following the practice pursued in former cases.
§ MR. SWIFT MACNEILLBut in the case of the Kitchener Grant the Lords' Motion was deferred for three days by Lord Salisbury on the ground that the Commons must take the initiative.