The Sun.
London, England, 1838-07-27 00:00:00

BANK OF IRELAND.

On the motion that the Order of the Day for the House resolving
itself into a Committee of Supply be read,
Mr. HUME rose to bring on the motion of which he had given
notice as follows That the exclusive privileges now eiljo)cd by the
Bank of Ireland are injurious to the best interests of that country,
and it is therefore most expedient and just to place, as soon as possible,
the Banks of Ireland on a footing of equality." He wished to know why
Ireland, which so much wanted the benefit of capital, should be continued
under such a system of monopoly any longer. He considered that
they were now in a situation to throw out of view what had been the
evils of Joint-stock Banks, or of the Bank of Ireland. They were now
in a situation to call upon the Government to say why the system of
banking in Ireland should not now be put on the same footing as the banks
in Scotland. He would call for the same justice to this country,only that he
knew that the Bank of England had their monopoly fur a certain
time; but in the case of the Bank of Ireland, the case was dif-
ferent ; for their charter of exclusiveness was now at an end, and
there could be no reason for continuing so injurious a monopoly.
Why was the capital of the Bank of Ireland, amounting to two mil.
lions and a half, lent to the Government at an interest of 4 per cent.?
and he wished to know whether the Right Hon. Gentleman had con.
tinued the former rate of interest, or whether since January any new
arrangement had been made. Seeing the Right Hon. Gentleman
might have borrowed the money at 3 per cent., if he was paying
4 or 4
per cent., it was evident that was to the great injury of the public.
He did not know any reason why the Bank of Ireland should not
be placed on the came footing as every Bank in Scotland.—.(Hear )
He (Mr. Hume) wished the Government to declare their intentions as
to the future state cf banking in Ireland; and he now begged to =ye
his resolution.

Sir J. RAE REID, in seconding the resolution, said he hoped the
Government, if they had it in contemplation to renew the Charter of the
Bank of Ireland, would recd lect the circatzstancLeune.cf which that Char.
ter had originally been grante.i. It was subsequently to the Legislature of
Ireland being independent of England; and in consequence it was consi-
tiered necessary that Ireland should, as England had, have a National Bank.
But since the Act of Union had passed, what necessity could be imagined
fur two National Banks ? In regard to the delay of the Joint Stock
Banks Committee Report, at the commencement of the Session,
he (Sir J. R. Reid; had been informed that an Honourable Mere.
ber had dt.ne him the honour to propose him as a Mem.
ber of that Committee; and his excuse for not acting was,
that all the evidence had been received, and that nothing further but
the report was to be done yet; now (some months subsequent; no report
had been received.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said both the mover
and the seconder of the amendment had fallen into error in suppesing
that i .o✓ing the Committee the, object Icaa to Oratide: Cie evidtnsi-

and frame a report. On the contrary, he (the Chancellor of the Ex-
-0,AI:1er) had stated that there were three distinct questions
on which evidence was to be taken : —the Establishment
of Branch Banks of England throughout England ; the issues, by cer.
tain of these Joint Stock Banks of bank paper in substitution for
their own; and, thirdly, this subject of the Bank of Ireland.—(Hear.)
The proceedings in the Committee had been strictly in accordance
with the statements he then made. It had not inquired into matters
which were the subject of investigation on previous occasions, and
tl- ere was therefore no inconsistency in the course taken by the Com.
mittee, and the declara ion which he had made. He should decline row
entering into an argument on thecase,because he coo Id ,how to the House
a sufficient reason for reserving that subject for future considera-ton.
Nothing could be more indiscreet on his part than to go into a prema-
ture discussion as to whether he agreed with or dissented from the
proposition of the Hon. Member, because it might prejudice the ques.
tion to do so before the evidence which had been taken was in the hands
of Members. But the House and the Hon. Gentleman had a right to see
that the public interests were not affected or forestalled out of doors.
The Report, which had been brought up, adverted to this subject, and
recommended that a Bill in continuation of that of last Session should
be brought in, in such a manner as to give the House an unfettered dis-
cretion in the next Session to deal with the question as it should think
fit.—(Hear.)—This was doing all that could be required in the
present posture of affairs. Without going into the general pro-
position, he wished to say one word on a suggestion made
by the Hon. Member for Kilkenny. He not only had thrown out a
supposition, the practicability of which he did not doubt, that an unres.
tricted freedom of competition in banking would be advantageous to
the interests of Ireland, but he had thrown out a much larger
proposition, that if it were not fur the privileges of the Bank
of England a free competition of the banks of issue in
this country was a matter which he contemplated as advantageous.
This was a suggestion to which he should enter his dissent, reserving it
as a matter for future consideration.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.)
There was another matter on which he also wished to make an
observation. Undoubtedly there was on the amount of advances
made by the Bank of Ireland, an amount of interest beyond
the market rate of interest ; but on the other hand the Bank of
Ireland acted differently by the public from the Bank of England,
which charged 3401. per million on the management of the public debt,
whilst the Bank of Ireland transacted this without any charge whatever.
He would not go into the question further than to assure the Honourable
Member, that if he looked minutely into this matter, which must be
dine next year at any rate, he would find that so great a saving as
he anticipated would not be effected. He (the Chancellor of
the Exchequer) was as anxious as any man to save 30,0001. or 40,0001.,
but he was afraid that could not be done. He, however, thought the
arrangement that had been made such as deserved reconsideration. The
Honourable Member had observed upon the effect of Joint Stock
Banks, and had said that the enquiry that had been entered into with re.
epect to them, and the publication of the evidence, had been adopted by
the Government in a feeling of hostility towards them. Now, in answer
to that he begged to say, that he had been actuated by no such
feeling.—(Hear, hear.) The Honourable Member had also said that
the publication of the evidence had left those Banks in a state of
feverish excitement. In that statement he could not agree with him,

as it was Ws belief that the publication of the evidence had been attended

with the best elFect, as it had given to the Banks, many of whom were
in their infancy, the benefit of the example and experience of the older
banks. The northern and central, and some of the other banks, were
in no way connected with this subject ; and if they were, when
he considered the pressure under which the public laboured,
and the small number of failures that had taken place, he
felt convinced that the principle of Joint Stock Banks was good, and
would prove beneficial to the country. Under these circumstances he
trust. d the explanation he had given would be satisfactory, reserving to
himself the right of making any observations in the next Session that he
might think fit.

Air. WARBURTON, after the intimation just given by the Right
Hon. the Chancellor of the Exchequer, as also the statements made on a
former occasion, that in next Session of Parliament not only the affairs of
the Bank of Ireland, but also the principles by which the affairs
of the Bank of England were regulated, would be submitted to a
Committee, and there undergo examination and discussion, thought
it would be most advisable if his Honourable Friend would
not persevere in his motion.—(Hear, hear, hear.) Some of those prin-
ciples by which Banking Companies were regulated, particularly with
respect to unrestricted circulation, had been the subject of discussion
with men who were best informed upon the subject ; and it being now
deeded that a Committee would sit for the purpose of deciding upon
these and other points next Session, he trusted his Hon. Friend would
withdraw the motion.