§ THE LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL (THE MARQUESS CURZON OF KEDLESTON)My Lords, I desire to inform your Lordships that I have received a letter from the Private Secretary of His Majesty the King upon a subject which closely concerns us all and which has attracted a good deal of public attention. I will ask your Lordships' permission to read it to the House:—
§ "Buckingham Palace,
§ "13th February, 1925.
§ "My dear Curzon,
§ "The attention of the King has been drawn to the controversy that has arisen in the public Press regarding the proposed removal of the statue of Queen Victoria from the Prince's Chamber in the House of Lords to a neighbouring site on the Great Staircase of that House, with a view to the erection of the Peers' War Memorial in the former position.
218§ "When His Majesty gave his assent to the removal in August, 1919, he was under the impression that the choice of this site met, as indeed it appeared to do at the time, with the unanimous approval of all concerned. His Majesty is aware that this decision has since been confirmed by a large majority of the Peers in a plebiscite of the entire House taken in the autumn of 1923.
§ "Since that date, however, it has transpired that a section of public opinion is opposed to the removal of Queen Victoria's statue. His Majesty is confident that nothing was further from the minds of the Peers than that any step should be taken which could be interpreted as involving the smallest disrespect to the memory of that great Queen. But he has directed me to offer the suggestion that the Peers themselves might be disposed to re-examine the question of all available sites for their War Memorial in the House of Lords, with a view to securing, if possible, that unanimity which is so greatly to be desired.
§ "Yours very sincerely,
§ "STAMFORDHAM."
§ I am confident that it will be the unanimous desire of your Lordships to take serious note of the suggestion that has fallen from His Majesty, and I would propose, alter consultation with those Peers who more particularly represent the different sections of the House, to place a Motion upon the Paper in the course of the next week when the matter can be more fully discussed than is possible at the present time.
§ May I, my Lords, as I happen to be upon my legs, take advantage of the position to offer, as I am sure you will wish me to do, the welcome of the whole House to the noble Earl who has just taken his seat. I need not upon the present occasion say more than in a single sentence that we regard his addition to our ranks as an honour to the House of Lords.