[riddell] BRITISH NORTH AMERICA ACT, 1867 89 



and it does not appear at what stage the quadrennial term was 

 substituted.^ - 



The matter passed suh silentio in 1840. At the Quebec Conference 

 (Sir) John A. Macdonald moved that the Legislative Assembly should 

 continue for five years — and this was unanimously agreed to. Ac- 

 cordingly the maximum appears in the Report of the Delegates and 

 in all the Drafts^. 



Section 53. "Bills for ai^ropriating any part of the public 

 revenue, or for imposing any tax or impost, shall originate in the 

 House of Commons." 



This is but the formal statement in statutory form of the con- 

 stitutional principle long recognized in the Mother Country that all 

 grants of money, and all taxation shall be made by the representatives 

 of the people i.e., the House of Commons.^ 



Murray had in 1763 received definite and specific instructions 

 not to allow the Assemblies intended to be called by him to take "upon 

 them the sole framing of Money Bills, refusing to let the Council 

 alter or amend the same;" the King added: "It is . . . Our 

 further pleasure that the Council shall have the like power of framing 

 Money Bills as the Assembly."^ 



Neither in the Constitutional Act of 1791, nor in the Union 

 Act of 1840 was there any such prohibition; nor was there any Statu- 

 tory provision as in the B. N. A. Act in which it is inserted apparently 

 ex ahundanti cautela. 



There was little or no discussion in the matter at the Conference, 

 the rule being taken for granted. Mr. (afterwards Sir) Oliver Mowat 

 moved "All bills for appropriating any part, &c." (as in the Section) — 

 there was no opposition and the Section passed unanimously.^ 



»29 Hansard, pp. 106, 112. 



2 Pope, "Confederation," pp. 20, 43, 102, 128, 165, 189, 223, 258, 



^ It is not without interest to note that Charles James Fox objected to the 

 Quebec Act of 1774 (amongst other reasons) because the clause in the Act providing 

 for the accustomed dues of the Roman CathoHc clergy was a money measure, and 

 it should not have originated in the House of Lords (as this Bill did) ; he urged that 

 to allow the Bill to pass would be "in fact, a relinquishment of the annual and hitherto 

 undoubled right of the House of Commons to originate Money Bills." He asked that 

 the journals of the House of Commons of March 5th, 1677 should be read: "And 

 the same being read accordingly, it appeared that they had rejected a Bill from the 

 Lords for the purpose of collecting customary tythes and other dues" for the reason 

 that the Bill should have originated in the House of Commons, 17 Hansard, pp. 

 1362, 1399. 



* Shortt & Doughty, pp. 136, 137. 



« Pope, "Confederation," pp. 31, 48, 87, 88, 135, 148, 166, 189, 224, 259. 



