1852 — 25th June

That no Bill relating to Religion, or the alteration of the Laws concerning Religion, be brought into this House, until the Proposition shall have been first considered in a Committee of the whole House, and agreed unto by The House.

That no Bill relating to Trade, or the alteration of the Laws concerning Trade, be brought into The House, until the Proposition shall have been first considered in a Committee of the whole House, and agreed unto by The House.

That this House will receive no Petition for any Sum of Money, relating to Public Service, or proceed upon any Motion for granting any Money, but what is recommended from The Crown.

That this House will not proceed upon any Petition, Motion, or Bill, for granting any Money, or for releasing or compounding any Sum of Money owing to The Crown, but in a Committee of the whole House.

That if any Motion be made in The House for any Public Aid, or Charge upon the people, the consideration and debate thereof shall not be presently entered upon, but shall be adjourned till such further day as The House shall think fit to appoint, and then it shall be referred to a Committee of the whole House before any Resolution or Vote of The House do pass therein.

That this House will not receive any Petition for compounding any Sum of Money owing to The Crown, upon any branch of the Revenue, without a Certificate, from the proper Officer or Officers, annexed to the said Petition, stating the Debt, what Prosecutions have been made for the Recovery of such Debt, and setting forth how much the Petitioner and his Security are able to satisfy thereof.

That this House will not proceed upon any Motion for an Address to The Crown, praying that any money may be issued, or that any expense may be incurred, but in a Committee of the whole House.

That with respect to any Bill brought to this House from the House of Lords, or returned by the House of Lords to this House, with Amendments, whereby any pecuniary penalty, forfeiture or fee shall be authorized, imposed, appropriated, regulated, varied, or extinguished, this House will not insist on its ancient and undoubted privileges in the following cases:

1. When the object of such pecuniary penalty or forfeiture is to secure the execution of the Act, or the punishment or prevention of offences.

1. Where such fees are imposed in respect of benefit taken or service rendered under the Act, and in order to the execution of the Act, and are not made payable into the Treasury or Exchequer, or in aid of the Public Revenue, and do not form the ground of public accounting by the parties receiving the same, either in respect of deficit or surplus.

1. When such Bill shall be a private Bill for a Local or Personal Act.

That the precise duration of every Temporary Law be expressed in a distinct Clause at the end of the Bill.

That every Member offering to present a Petition to The House, not being a Petition for a Private Bill, or relating to a Private Bill before The House, do confine himself to a statement of the Parties from whom it comes, of the number of signatures attached to it, and of the material allegations contained in it, and to the reading of the prayer of such Petition.

That every such Petition not containing matter in breach of the Privileges of this House, and which, according to the Rules or usual Practice of this House, can be received, be brought to the Table by the direction of The Speaker, who shall not allow any Debate, or any Member to speak upon, or in relation to, such Petition; but it may be read by the Clerk at the Table, if required.

That if such Petition relate to any matter or subject which the Member presenting it is desirous of bringing before The House, and if such Member shall state it to be his intention to make a Motion thereupon, such Member may give Notice that he will make a Motion on some subsequent day, That the Petition be printed with the Votes.

That, in the case of such Petition complaining of some present personal grievance, for which there may be an urgent necessity for providing an immediate remedy, the matter contained in such Petition may be brought into discussion on the presentation thereof.

That all other such Petitions, after they shall have been ordered to lie on the Table, be referred to the Committee on Public Petitions, without any Question being put.

That, subject to the above regulations, Petitions against any Resolution or Bill imposing a Tax or Duty for the current service of the year, be henceforth received, and the usage under which The House has refused to entertain such Petitions be discontinued.

That no Member's name be affixed to any seat in the House before the hour of Prayers; and that the Speaker do give directions to the doorkeepers accordingly.

That the Serjeant-at-Arms attending this House do, from time to time, take into his custody any Stranger whom he may see, or who may be reported to him to be, in any part of the House or Gallery appropriated to the Members of this House, and also any Stranger who, having been admitted into any other part of the House or Gallery, shall misconduct himself, or shall not withdraw when Strangers are directed to withdraw, while The House, or any Committee of the whole House, is sitting; and that no person so taken into custody be discharged out of custody without the special order of The House.

That no Member of this House do presume to bring any Stranger into any part of the House or Gallery appropriated to the Members of this House, while The House, or a Committee of the whole House, is sitting.

That the Serjeant-at-Arms attending this House do, from time to time, when the House is going to Prayers, give Notice thereof to all Committees; and that all proceedings of Committees, after such Notice, be declared to be null and void.

That, to prevent the intercepting or losing of Letters directed to Members of this House, the person appointed to bring Letters from the General Post Office to this House, or some other person to be appointed by the Postmaster-General, do for the future, every day during the Session of Parliament, Sundays excepted, constantly attend, from Ten of the clock in the morning till Seven in the afternoon, at the place appointed for the delivery of the said Letters, and take care during his stay there, to deliver the same to the several Members to whom they shall be directed, or to their known servant or servants, or other persons bringing notes under the hands of the Members sending for the same.

That the said Officer, do, upon his going away, lock up such Letters as shall remain undelivered; and that no Letter be delivered but within the hours aforesaid.

That the said Orders be sent to the Postmaster-General at the commencement of each Session.

That, when any Letter or Packet directed to this House shall come to Mr. Speaker, he do open the same; and acquaint the House, at their next sitting, with the contents thereof, if proper to be communicated to this House.

That, unless The House shall otherwise direct, all Orders of the Day set down in the Order Book for Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, shall be disposed of before The House will proceed upon any Motions of which Notices shall have been given.

That at the time fixed for the commencement of Public Business, on days on which Orders have precedence of Notices of Motions, and after the Notices of Motions have been disposed of on all other days, Mr. Speaker do direct the Clerk at the Table to read the Orders of the Day, without any Question being put.

That the Orders of the Day be disposed of in the order in which they stand upon the Paper; the right being reserved to Her Majesty's Ministers of placing Government Orders at the head of the List, in the rotation in which they are to be taken on the days on which Government Bills have precedence.

That no Notice shall be given beyond the period which shall include the Four Days next following on which Notices are entitled to precedence; due allowance being made for any intervening adjournment of The House, and the period being in that case so far extended as to include Four Notice Days falling during the sitting of The House.

That The House do meet every Wednesday, at Twelve o'clock at noon, for Private Business, Petitions, Orders of the Day, and Notices of Motions, and do continue to sit until Six o'clock, unless previously adjourned.

That when such business has been disposed of, or at Six o'clock precisely, notwithstanding there may be business under discussion, Mr. Speaker do adjourn The House, without putting any Question.

That whenever The House shall be in Committee on Wednesday at Six o'clock, the Chairman do immediately report Progress, and Mr. Speaker do resume the Chair, and adjourn The House, without putting any Question.

That the business under discussion, and any business not disposed of at the time of such Adjournment, do stand as Orders of the Day for the next day on which The House shall sit.

That whenever the House shall sit, for despatch of business, at Twelve o'clock on any day, except Wednesday and Saturday, if such business be disposed of not later than Three o'clock, The House will resume its sitting at Five o'clock; and if such business be disposed of after Three o'clock and before Four o'clock, The House will resume its sitting at Six o'clock.

That when such business has not been disposed of at Four o'clock, Mr. Speaker (or the Chairman, in case The House shall be in Committee) do leave the Chair, and The House will resume its sitting at Six o'clock, when the Orders of the Day not disposed of at the morning sitting, and any Motion which was under discussion at Four o'clock, shall be set down in the Order Book after the other Orders of the Day.

That whenever The House shall be in Committee at Four o'clock, the Chairman do report Progress when The House resumes its sitting.

That all Dropped Orders of the Day be set down in the Order Book after the Orders of the Day for the next day on which the House shall sit.

That when any Bill shall be presented by a Member, in pursuance of an Order of this House, or shall be brought from the Lords, the Questions "That this Bill be now read a first time," and "That this Bill be printed," shall be decided without Amendment or Debate.

That the Committees of Supply and Ways and Means shall be fixed for Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and for any other day on which Orders of the Day shall have precedence of Notices of Motions, of which Notice shall have been given on the preceding Friday.

That when a Bill or other matter (except Supply, or Ways and Means) has been partly considered in Committee, and the Chairman has been directed to report Progress, and ask leave to sit again, and The House shall have ordered that the Committee shall sit again on a particular day, The Speaker shall, when the order for the Committee has been read, forthwith leave the Chair, without putting any question, and The House shall thereupon resolve itself into such Committee.

That at the close of the Proceedings of a Committee of the whole House on a Bill, the Chairman shall report the Bill forthwith to The House, and when Amendments shall have been made thereto, the same shall be received, without debate, and a time appointed for taking the same into consideration.

That no Select Committee shall, without leave of The House, consist of more than Fifteen Members; that such leave shall not be moved for without Notice; and that in the case of Members proposed to be added or substituted after the first appointment of the Committee, the Notice shall include the Names of the Members proposed to be added or substituted.

That every Member intending to move for the appointment of a Select Committee, do endeavour to ascertain previously whether each Member proposed to be named by him, on such Committee, will give his attendance thereupon.

That every Member intending to move for the appointment of a Select Committee, shall, One day next before the nomination of such Committee, place on the Notices the Names of the Members intended to be proposed by him, to be Members of such Committee.

That lists be affixed in some conspicuous place in the Committee Clerks' Office, and in the Lobby of the House, of all Members serving on each Select Committee.

That to every Question asked of a Witness under examination, in the Proceedings of any Select Committee, there be prefixed in the Minutes of the Evidence the Name of the Member asking such Question.

That the Names of the Members present each day on the sitting of any Select Committee be entered on the Minutes of Evidence, or in the Minutes of the Proceedings of the Committee (as the case may be), and reported to the House on the Report of such Committee.

That in the event of any Division taking place in any Select Committee, the Question proposed, the Name of the Proposer, and the respective Votes thereupon of each Member present, be entered on the Minutes of Evidence, or on the Minutes of the Proceedings of the Committee (as the case may be), and reported to the House on the Report of such Committee.

That if, at any time during the sitting of a Select Committee of this House, the Quorum of Members fixed by The House shall not be present, the Clerk of the Committee shall call the attention of the Chairman to the fact, who shall thereupon suspend the Proceedings of the Committee until a Quorum be present, or adjourn the Committee to some future day.