Evening star., 1924-01-26
Lord Parmoor a Striking Factor
OF New British Labor Ministry

! legal questions alike by the primes
and the king. He also is the great
est expert in ecclesiastical law il
the United Kingdom and still retains
the Office of chancellor and vicar
general Of the archdiocese and met
ropolitan province of Canterbury.
thorities in England on the subjecz
OF old silver plate, his collection
thereof is unrivaled. He Is mos
agreeable and witty raconteur, n
/ Thames. where he spends much %
/ his leisure, and having always been
! very good-looking man, may be re-
garded as an ornament not only II
the house Of lords, but also 10 the
I new cabinet.
| In spite of his close and intimate
relations with the reigning house,
Lord Parmoor is very jealous OF the
/ prerogatives of parliament and of any
encroachment thereon by either the
sovereign or by the government. Thus
F., in the very early stages OF the war.
King George, in conjunction with thu
then premier. Herbert AsQuith, issued
an order through the privy council
! directing both houses Of parliament
! 10 sit in secret session to receive Ger
tain confidential communications from
J l.
colnshire. who. as hereditary lozd
great chamberlain. has charge of tho
Palace OF Westminster. closed the
+ latter to all strangers for the day
/ This formed the subject OF very bold
criticism on the part Of Lord Parmoor.
He contended that Lord Lincolnshire
/ had no authority whatsoever to close
the doors of the palace of parliament
/ to strangers without the consent OF
its members. While admitting th;t-
! the marquis had obeyed in the mat
| ter the commands Of the sovereign.
! issued through an order in council
over the kings sign manual, and by
] the government Of the day. he in.
sisted that the authority of the mon.
arch and of the council did not eX-
tend over the houses of parliament.
! this. too. III spite of the fact than
the houses of parliament rank as q
royal palace. He called attention to
/ the fact that relations of the crown
/ to parliament. and the question of the
! control of the Palace of Westminster
had formed the subject of numerous
discussions by a joint committee OF
both houses of the imperial legisla--
ture in 1901. Immediately after til"
! accession to the throne of Edward .
| VII. and that the committee had
| unanimously decided that the author
! Try Of the lord great chamberlain, in
! the name Of the crown, over the
buildings of both houses of parlia-
ment could only be regarded in force
when these two chambers were not
sitting.
| Lord Parmoor showed that the house
of lords and the house of commons
had an obvious inherent and traoi.
tional right to make whatever regur
! lations they deem fit concerning that
part of the Royal Palace Of West
minister which they occupied. lie
did object the nf H..
| session ordered by the monarch, but
| he did make the very strongest oh
| lection to the action of the lord great
chamberlain giving orders closing
| either house of parliament to Stran-
gers. I'VE have standing orders" hs
added, under which strangers can be
excluded from our house during our
! debates. standing orders which we
can enforce and invoke. But 1t ia
quite improper that any such eXclu-
| sion should be directed and COM
manded by an outside authorlty-ths
authority being that of King George
! in privy council and OF his govern
! ment.
| If caE attention to this it is to
show that an entire generation of court
! life in the immedite encourage Of roy
alty has not in the slightest affected
the independence of Lord Parmoor to-
ward the crown. He is quite as keenly
| Jealous of the rights of parliament,
representing the will of the people. as
sny of the most ultra-radical members
| of the labor party, to the government
! of which he now belongs as its leader
| in the house of lords as lord president
| of the privy council. Nor did this
public protest in parliament against
| the action of the king in counci, in
| encroaching upon the rights of the
people as represented in their parlia-
| rnent, ever affect in the slightest de-
the confidence Of his relations with hi "A
sovereign,