AN EMPIRE'S PARLIAMENT.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 1948, 22 May 1880, Page 3

AN EMPIRE'S PARLIAMENT.

At a meeting of the Colonial Institute, at the Pall-mall, Eegent street, London, Mr A. Staveley Hill, Q. 0., M.P., read a paper in which he sketched a legislative council for the Bristish Empire. He said England and her colonies will either become more and more severed or more and more confederated, and he hoped for the latter eventuality. In the United States and Germany were to be seen the most instructive federations of modern times; and after describing these he proposed for the Empire of Great Britain a High State Council, which should oonsider and legislate upon the following subjects:— Questions of domicile, Customs duties and taxes affecting trade between different parts of the Empire, weights and measures, coinage and issue of paper money, bank regulations, patents and copyright, questions affecting the mercantile marine, posts and telegraphs, law process and execution of judgments, civil procedure, military and naval organisation, quarantine and sanitarylpreoautions as regards animals, and as ancillary to these, an Imperial budget, and the quotas to be 'proTided by each part of the Empire for these purposes. Only colonies possetsing responsible or representative Governments were included in the scheme, and to initiate it the Queen might be advised to ask her Parliaments to take steps to acoredit representatives of their territories to form the High State Council. A second consultative body would not be_ necessary, as the Council would not be inclined to enter upon precipitate measures. Existing Parliaments would ocoupy the position of a Lower House, giving expression to the popular voice. The United Kingdom would be represented by 33 members, and the colonies by 38, these latter being distributed according to consideration of population and wealth; 12 being given to the American colonies, 7 to the colonies in Africa, 4 to the Asian colonies, and 15 to the Australasian colonies. The choice of representatives and their emolument would be according to the provisions of local parliaments, but every representative would give his individual vote. It might be presumed that such a high official as the English Seoretary of State for Foreign Affairs would be elected a member of the council, but the Lord Chancellor virtute officii would be president, and would bring forward the budget, by the acceptance of which the support of the ministry would be tested. All commercial treaties would the assent of the Council before ratification. A traditional polioy would be secured by the Council never being dissolved, one-third of the members being elected every two years. The House of Commons, however, as holding the pursestrings of the nation, would have the same control over the High State Council as it now has over the Executive, and inasmuch as both the Lord Chancellor and the Foreign Secretary would be equally members of the Ministry, an adverse vote of the Commons would have the same effect for a change of polioy as it has at present. The fatigue and expense consequent on members attending the Council would not be greater than that of the representatives in Parliament from the distant parts of England in the days of Edward 111. This scheme would not vary the framework of the British Constitution ; it would promote peace, and would ensure the stability of the Empire. An animated discußsion followed, in which the speakers, while not at one as to the details of the paper, were agreed that the question of federation required agitating. The Duke of Westminster, who presided, in returning thankß, said he thought the first effort Bhould be to obtain a representative colonial council, with whom the Colonial Secretary would confer. He, however, should not be required to follow its advice unless the colonies furnished money for executing its decrees.