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XXII.

Part I.

duty is thereby augmented; the charge of certain pay- Chapter ments upon the Civil Contingencies Fund: 2 a proposal to repeal an existing drawback on the export of sugar, as it effected an increase of charge upon the importers who desired to export sugar; a provision granting costs against the Crown or the revenue officers, and thereby imposing a public charge; and petitions praying for compensation out Remission of the public revenues.5 Prior to 1875, it had been held that a proposal for the remission of statutory advances made by the treasury did not come within the standing orders. But this exemption no longer exists, because these advances are made recoverable by statute, as specialty debts due to the Crown."

of advances.

38 & 39 Vict. c. 89, s. 33.

Recom

of guaran

8

Procedure on guarantees.-Contingent or prospective mendation charges upon the public revenue, and upon the revenue of tees. India, come within the purview of these standing orders; therefore before clauses in a bill can be considered, which apply the Consolidated Fund-money to be voted by Parliament-or the revenues of India as a guarantee for sums to be raised, paid, or borrowed for any purpose, such clauses must receive the preliminary authority of a committee resolution, founded upon the recommendation of the Crown; and the guarantee clauses in the bill must be printed in italics.9

Instructions.

tions, see

Instructions needing recommendation from the Crown.- InstrucNo instruction to a committee on a bill can be pro- p. 482. posed which would enable the committee to add provisions to the bill creating a charge 10 or imposing a

1 Stamp Duties Bill, 1854, 109 C. J. 334.

2 St. Alban's Inquiry Commission Bill, 1851.

3 120 C. J. 313.

166 H. D. 3 s. 1593.

581 C. J. 66; 83 ib. 212; 93 ib. 586; 112 ib. 219; 119 ib. 177

• Public Loans (Ireland) Remission Bill, 1881.

7 Main Drainage (Metropolis) Bill, 1858; Canada Railway Bill, 1867.

1859, 114 C. J. 55. 315; 1860, 115

ib. 455; Military Orphan Fund,
1866, 121 ib. 156, &c.

9 154 H. D. 969; 151 H. D. 3 s.
1519.

10 Notice of an instruction to extend the provisions of the Education (Scotland) (Sutherland and Caithness) Bill (1875) to Scotland generally, notice paper, 15th June, 1875, p. 1430; and of an instruction, Local Taxation (Customs) Bill, 1890, to sanction the admission of clauses empowering the treasury to make a loan, were on this account

Chapter tax1 upon the people, unless such instruction receives the recommendation of the Crown.

XXII.

Part I.

5

67, Appen

Petitions for the creation of a charge.-In pursuance of Petitions. Procedure standing orders Nos. 66 and 67, a petition praying directly S. O. 66, on petitions, see or indirectly for an advance of public money;2 for com- dix I. P. 524. pounding or relinquishing any debts due to, or other claims of the Crown; 8 or for remission of duties or other charges payable by any person: or for a charge upon the revenues of India, will only be received if recommended by the Crown, and, in case of debts due to the Crown, on proof of the steps taken for the recovery of such debts. Petitions distinctly praying for compensation, or indemnity for losses, out of the public revenues are refused, unless recommended by the Crown: but petitions are received praying that compensation may be made for losses contingent upon the passing of bills pending in Parliament."

6

No increase of sums demanded on behalf of the Crown.-As is subsequently explained (see p. 615), the constitutional principle which vests in the Crown the sole responsibility of incurring national expenditure, forbids an increase by the Commons of a sum demanded on behalf of the Crown for the service of the state. This principle, however, is apparently Royal re

ruled to be irregular. The words,
"for an advance by way of loan
from the treasury," were conse-
quently withdrawn from the notice,
p. 1575 of the notices, May, 1890.
See also the Speaker's refusal to
put the question on an instruction,
Dublin Barracks Bill, 12th May,
1892, 147 C. J. 243, and rulings on
instructions, Workmen (Compensa-
tion for Accidents) Bill, 1897, and on
an instruction, Education (Scotland)
Bill, 1897, which proposed to repeal
a statutory limit of the amount of
the education grant, 49 Parl. Deb.
4 s. 1153; 51 ib. 641. On one occa-
sion, the royal recommendation
was refused to an instruction: but
the refusal showed that the motion
for the instruction should not have
been proposed from the chair, 93
C. J. 204.

commendation in

1 Instructions Finance Bill, 1894, general to insert provisions altering the terms. composition duty, so as to make it correspond with the death duties imposed by the bill, and Finance Bill, 1901, to substitute for the coal duty other taxes and to put taxes in the bill for which no preliminary resolution had been agreed to, ruled out of order, 24 Parl. Deb. 4 s. 1218; 95 ib. 755.

2 Captain Manby, 1823, 78 C. J. 261. 285; 90 ib. 42. 487. 507; 111 ib. 247; 119 ib. 177.

375 ib. 167; 81 ib. 66; 83 ib. 212. 81 ib. 353; 92 ib. 372 (Duke of Marlborough).

5 111 ib. 366.

673 ib. 157; 74 ib. 422; 87 ib. 571; 90 ib. 487; 104 ib. 223, &c. 790 ib. 136; 92 ib. 469.

No pro

posal of new taxes

minister.

XXII.

Part I.

disregarded when the recommendation of the Crown is Chapter
given to a resolution empowering the expenditure of public
money which, framed in general terms, places no limitation
on the amount of expenditure to be authorized by the reso-
lution. As the resolution sanctions, without any specific
limitation, the application of money to be provided by
Parliament to certain purposes, when the clauses in a
bill founded upon such a resolution are before the com-
mittee, the freedom of action sanctioned by that resolution
can be exercised. The committee is not bound by the
terms of the provisions which the ministers of the Crown.
have inserted in the bill; and any member may propose
an increase of the grants specified in these clauses, or
to extend the application of the provisions of the bill,
whatever may be the cost resulting therefrom, so long as
the power conferred by the royal recommendation is not
exceeded. Acting on this principle, when, in 1812, a
committee was considering a message from the Prince
Regent recommending, in general terms, provision to be
made for the family of Mr. Spencer Perceval, amendments
were permitted for increasing the provision proposed by
the ministers; and this practice has been supported by
rulings from the chair, though, on the last occasion, not
without remarks which deserve careful consideration.2

Responsibility of the Crown and Parliament regarding taxation.―The principle that the sanction of the Crown must except by a be given to every grant of money drawn from the public revenue, applies equally to the taxation levied to provide that revenue. No motion can therefore be made to impose a tax, save by the minister of the Crown, unless such tax be in substitution, by way of equivalent, for taxation at that moment submitted to the consideration of Parliament; nor See proceedings i can the amount of a tax proposed on behalf of the Crown be augmented, nor any alteration made in the area of means, P imposition. In like manner, no increase can be considered

123 H. D. 199; 2 Walpole, Life of Spencer Perceval, 303.

2 293 H. D. 3 s. 53; 354 ib. 1898.

3 On the 14th March, 1844, Mr. Howard Elphinstone proposed a committee of the whole house to

ways and

624.

XXII.

Part 1.

Chapter by the house, except on the initiative of a minister, acting on behalf of the Crown, either of an existing, or of a new or temporary tax for the service of the year; nor can a member other than a minister move for the introduction Reduction of duties. of a bill framed to effect a reduction of duties, which would incidentally effect the increase of an existing duty, or the imposition of a new tax, although the aggregate amount of imposition would be diminished by the provisions of the bill.

Reduction of public charges, see p. 572.

to be in

committee

on the bill.

When a schedule of duties has been reported from a Duties not committee, and agreed to by the house, the committee creased by on the bill cannot increase such duties, nor add any articles not previously voted: but if the duties so voted are less than those payable under the existing law, it is competent for the committee on the bill to increase them, provided such increase be not in excess of the existing duties.

of taxation.

The house, accordingly, can make amendments which Reduction diminish the amount of a reduction of taxation, or postpone the day when the reduction takes place, although the amendments may so far increase the charges upon the people. So long as an existing tax is not increased, any modification of the proposed reduction may be introduced in the committee on the bill, being regarded as a question, not for increasing the charge upon the people, but for determining to what extent such charge shall be reduced. Thus, on the 19th March, 1845, resolutions were reported from a committee on the Customs Acts by which the import duties on glass were reduced from and after a prescribed date. In the committee on the bill introduced upon those resolutions, it was proposed to postpone the period at which such reduction of duty would take place; and the amendment was ruled, privately, by the Speaker to be regular, although the amendment postponed the relief

consider the Stamp Acts, with the
view of imposing the same amount
of probate duty on real estate as was
paid on personal property. Objec-

tion being taken, the Speaker
observed on the irregularity of the
proceedings, and the motion was
withdrawn.

Drawbacks.

Questions of amount

from taxation beyond the time voted by the preliminary Chapter committee, and agreed to by the house.1

XXII.

Part I.

see p. 601.

As a final illustration of the way in which the reduction of public charges is dealt with, it may be mentioned that, as a "drawback "is a fiscal arrangement made to facilitate the exportation of goods liable to excise duties, and is so far an alleviation of taxation, a provision creating a "draw- Bounties, back" can be considered without recommendation from the Crown, or a preliminary committee resolution. Thus when, in 1857, resolutions affecting the sugar duties had been voted in the committee of ways and means, although those resolutions did not touch duties levied in the Isle of Man, the grant of a drawback upon sugar imported into the Isle of Man was inserted in the Customs Bill which was founded upon those resolutions. In like manner, when upon the consideration of the Lords' amendments to a bill which was designed to relieve the Consolidated Fund of charges to the amount of 20,000l., an amendment to the bill consequent upon a Lords' amendment, which limited the extent of that relief to 18,000l., was held to be admissible, as not imposing an addition to the existing charge on the Consolidated Fund.2

Doubts have been entertained whether, on the report of duties on stage of resolutions from a committee by which duties are report. reduced, it is regular to propose any amendment by which such reductions would be negatived, or the amount of reduction diminished. It has been contended that such an amendment would, in effect, increase a charge upon the people, which cannot be done with the Speaker in the chair, even upon royal recommendation, and the resolution of a committee. But it is clear that, if the amendment were made, it would merely leave unchanged the duty existing by law, or would reduce it; and that the charge upon the people would not be increased. It would, indeed, be an anomalous form to report such resolutions to the house at all, unless the house could disagree to or amend them,

1 100 C. J. 206. See also proceedings on Sugar Bill, 1848, 103 ib. 853.

2 193 H. D. 3 s. 1887. 1920; see also n. 3, p. 581.

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