SECOND READING. (Hansard, 3 June 1872)

THE LORD CHANCELLOR
, in moving that the Bill be now read the second time, said, this was one of a series of Bills of which the object was the reduction of the bulk of the Statute Book with reference to repealed and expired statutes. The present Bill disposed of some 400 statutes dating from the year 1800 to the year 1806, and he hoped that in the course of this year another measure extending to 1810 would be prepared in order to enable the Statute Law Commissioners to carry on their work of the re-publication of the statutes.

§ THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY
desired to point out that there was an Act to enforce the due observance of the canons and rubrics of the Church of England as to the age of persons admitted to the sacred orders of deacon and priest. It was alleged that this Act had been virtually repealed by the Irish Church Act; but on examination he found that although the Preamble of the latter Act was directed to remedy a certain abuse which had arisen in Ireland, yet the enacting part, which extended to Great Britain as well as Ireland, declared that from and after the passing of the Act no person should be ordained deacon till he had attained the age of 23 years complete, or priest until he had attained the age of 24 years complete, and that if any person infringed this enactment his admission to Holy orders should be void in law. It was true that by the Act of Uniformity that prohibition already existed in the English Statute Book, but neither that Act nor any canon of the Church said that orders given to persons under those ages should be void. He apprehended that this was a most formidable change to introduce, for if orders were void ab initio, the validity of marriages celebrated by, and other acts done by persons holding such orders, might be impeached. Therefore he earnestly hoped that before the Bill went into Committee the noble and learned Lord would turn his attention to this 1023 particular Act, and consider whether it ought to be included in the schedule.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR
said, he was glad the noble Marquess had brought this subject under his notice. He wished their Lordships to understand that he was only doing his best with the agents employed to carry these Acts into effect. When it was remembered that the Bill dealt with some 400 statutes, it was not to be wondered at that some error, such as he presumed this to be, should have been committed, notwithstanding the competence of the draughtsmen employed. He would make a note of the matter and have it looked into.