31st December 1802

To be funded

To be paid off

Proposed to be issued on aids, 1804

The supplies for the current year were partly of a temporary nature, and such as gentlemen would see constituted charges that could not be expected to occur in future years: he meant the corn bounties 524,5731., the exchequer bills of 1801, 2,781,000l., due to the bank 1,500,000l., the residue of the three millions, which he should propose, by a resolution on Monday next, to discharge. There was also a repayment to be made to the East-India company, on account of advances in India to the army and navy. It was probable that there was a demand against the public, for those advances, of one million; perhaps more, he feared not less. Those sums made together the sum of 5,805,5731. His reason for noticing these occasional charges was, that he thought he expressed the sense of the house and of the country when he said that effectual provision ought to be made for the permanent charges-that they must be provided out of a permanent fund-that we must not compromise our security, by reducing our expenditure to our revenue, but rather raise our revenue to the exigencies of our expenditure. He should, therefore, not be doing what he conceived to be his duty, if he did not ask that house to make up its mind to considerable additions to the permanent charges

14,180,000

£7,000,000

4,281,000

11,281,000

2,899,000

11,000,000

£13,899,000

of the country. He trusted also that no financial operation would be necessary that year, beyond that which would be called for by the necessity of preventing a glut of exchequer bills in the market.

The object of the motion, of which he had given notice, was to take credit for the growing surplus of the consolidated fund, to the amount of 4,000,0001. His rea sons for doing so were shortly these. On the 10th of October 1802, the surplus in the three quarters was 5,580,000l. To this he had a right to add the bounties on corn for half a year, a charge not likely to occur again, 441,000l. To this he must add two quarters of the taxes imposed last session,and not included in that sum. The produce was likely to exceed very considerably the four millions he stated it at; but he would not estimate the two quarters at more than two millions. From that total he must deduct the sum of 251,000l. received on account of the income tax. These sums produced a total of 7,658,0001. The produce of the three quarters it might be candid to take 5,884,000l.; adding to this a third for the year, the total growing produce of the consolidated fund would be 7,845,0001. But the committee would observe that he had only taken credit for 6,500,000%. They would observe also, in the resolution

at

resolution he should submit to them, that he only asked them to vote the sum of four millions, which was only two hundred thousand pounds more than was actually realised on the 10th of October. His wish in not proposing to vote more than four millions was, to wait till the 5th of April next, when we should be enabled to make the addition to that sum upon surer grounds. Progressive as the increase in the produce of our taxes had been, the produce of the present year greatly exceeded any year that ever was known. The largest amount was that of the year 1792: the growing produce of the consolidated fund was in that year 4,310,000/-that was the largest year. The estimate of the produce of the present year was nearly double the amount of the year. 1792.

It would appear from a paper on the table, that the produce of the permanent taxes for the year ending on the 10th of October 1802, was, of Old taxes

To this we must add the corn bounties

£13,853,724

Total of produce of old

taxes

1,680,000

15,483,724 New permanent taxes 11,345,364

Grand total £26,829,088

The produce of the old permanent taxes in the year was larger than ever was known, with the exception of the year 1799, when they produced 15,700,000l. ; but it was to be remarked that during a quarter of a year, ending in October 1802, a very important branch of the revenue was unproductive; that the distilleries were stopped. It might fairly therefore

be said, that if they had been open, the produce of the old taxes would have much exceeded the produce of the year 1799. This statement with reference to the last year, must, he was sure, be satisfactory; it must be equally so with respect to the present year; and if we chose to look forward, we might look forward with greater satisfaction. We had seen that the revenue had largely and progressively increased. He did therefore, notwithstanding the predictions that had been made with such confidence, venture to look forward himself, and to call upon the house to look forward, with confidence and satisfaction, to what might be expected to be the produce of our taxes in future years.

It had not been possible to make up an exact account of our exports and imports during the last year, but he would state the result of the best information he had been able to obtain on the subject. It appeared upon sundry articles of imports in the year 1801, that the amount of imports was 7,642,7511. The amount in the year 1802 was 6,123,7231., a diminution beyond the preceding year; but it would be recollected that during the former of these periods, there were very great imports of grain, which swelled the amount of that year. The whole amount of the official value of the imports ending the 10th of October 1801, was 15,535,5271.; yet the official value of the imports in the year ending the 10th of October 1802, was 15,664,6851. The point upon which the attention of the committee would be most anxiously fixed, would be the amount of British manufactures exported. The real value of them, not of all, but of all of which an account could

be

be obtained, was in the quarter ending the 10th of October 1801, 6,812,8251. In the quarter ending the 10th of October 1802, the value was 7,335,8851. The official value of the whole exports for the year 1801, was 24,473,000l. The official value for the year 1802, was 27,897,2971., an increase of nearly 3,000,000l. He was justified in stating, from a comparison of the exports with former years, that the actual excess of real value exported was not less than eight millions. The amount of the last year was forty-two millions: the amount in the present year would not be less than fifty millions.

Some gentlemen had alluded to the interest of the shipping trade and of navigation. He was not able to state, at present, the actual amount of the tonnage imported and exported. He should be enabled however to lay such an account, to the 5th of January 1803, before the house, after the recess. He had, at present, an account of the number of British and foreign vessels from the 10th of October 1801, to October 10th 1802. In the first year, to October 10th 1801, there were entered inwards, in the port of London, 1762 ships; the amount of the tonnage was 418,631 tons. In the year ending October 10th 1802, there were entered 2459 ships, and the tonnage was 574,700 tons: the number of men employed in the first of these periods was 23,096-in the last period, 33,743. He did, therefore, conceive that he was fully justified in forming that opinion which he expressed on a former day, that the shipping and navigation interest had not suffered since the peace. (A question was whispered to Mr. Addington from the opposite side of the house.) An ho

nourable member on the other side asked him whether he was speaking of British ships. He was obliged to him for the question; for it enabled him to say that he was speaking of British ships alone.

He then proceeded to state the number of foreign ships entered inwards: the number in the year ending the 10th of October 1801, was 3385; in the year ending the 10th of October 1802, 1549; the tonnage in the first period was 452,677 tons; in the second, 214,112 tons. Of British ships cleared outwards, the number was, in the year ending the 10th of October 1801, from the port of London 1331; in the year ending the 10th of October 1802, 1933. The amount of the tonnage in the first of these periods was 350,634, and the number of seamen employed 24,070. The amount of the tonnage in the second period was 419,067, and the number of sea men employed 28,112. The number of foreign ships cleared outwards, for those two years, was nearly in the same proportion. The number in the first year was 3381; in the second year it was reduced to 1688. He was fully aware that it was impossible for him to add any thing to what he had stated to the committee. Ha would not attempt to strengthen the impression which arose from the statement of plain and incon trovertible facts.

The honourable gentleman next adverted to the sinking fund, the great source of the preservation of our finances, and the means for the liquidation of the national debt. At the establishment of this fund, soon after the conclu sion of the war in 1783, the amount of the funded debt of the country was 218,000,000%. ;

the

the means for its discharge were as 1-38th; the charge for interest ten millions, and the means 1-10th. At present, such had been the operation of the system; when the charge was eighteen millions, we had a sum of six millions, constituting not a tenth, but a third of the whole. In this year, therefore, continued he, you have six millions liberated for embarking in new enterprises, for exploring new sources of prosperity, and extending the old. But was it confined to the present year? No; there were six millions let loose every year, for the purpose of increasing our commerce, extending our trade, encouraging our manufactures, improving our agriculture, and diffusing itself in a thousand channels, through the whole body of the country, invigorating its strength, improving its resources, and adding to its prosperity.

Mr. Addington mentioned also the increasing prosperity of Ireland, which he attributed to the union. In August last there was a difference of 920,000l., being an excess of revenue beyond that of any preceding year. It had been doubted whether our finances would be equal to the expenses of our establishment; but it was to be considered that the establishment in question was that of 1783, which was not liable to an increase, but, on the contrary, might admit of many circumstances of diminution. He (Mr. Addington) had not, however, stated that our revenues were adequate to such an establishment, but that an establishment very little short of it might be kept up out of the existing revenues of the country, supposing it to increase in the same proportion as it had done last year. The reason why he stated the ade

quacy of our means to our establishment, was this: it was intended to reduce one part of it as soon as the whole force should be raised. The part so intended to be reduced consisted of the out-pensioners employed in garrisons; a measure which might be effected without any diminution of our real strength, because this force might be easily re-assembled, if circumstances should render it expedient. He supposed that there would be a reduction, in such case, of our expenses, of one million. He estimated the ordnance at 778,0001. being higher than it ever was at any preceding period, except during the late war. He estimated the miscellaneous services 1,000,000l., and the supposed number of sailors double of what it was at any other period of peace. Under all these circumstances, the joint contribution of Great Britain and Ireland would be 12,000,000l. Deducting then 2-17ths for Ireland 1,356,000 Deducting also the 2-17ths which she had to pay on the 1,200,0001. ̄ civil list

There would remain for the contribution of Great Britain

Now to make good the sum, he took land and malt

at

141,000

10,503,000

2,750,000