Member of Parliament For Lambeth
Following the Metropolis Management Act 1855, William was elected to the Lambeth Vestry whose job was to co-ordinate the area's developing infrastructure though he appears to have taken little active role in proceedings. William resolved to stand for parliament in Lambeth and launched his campaign in 1857 with a speech making much of his understanding of working class life and declaring himself to be a reformer:
... to support the ballot, extension of suffrage, equalisation of the poor rate, administrative reform, to uphold the honour of the country in connection with its foreign relations, to oppose compulsory church rates and support the reduction of public expenditure in order to abolish income tax.
On 28 March, his nomination was proposed by Frederick Doulton (1824–1872), brother of Sir Henry Doulton, who had been an unsuccessful candidate at previous elections. Doulton appears to have written many of William's speeches and William had played his part by lavish entertainment of the electorate.
Williams was elected to the House of Commons in the 1857 general election but his campaign was alleged to have cost £6,000, some claimed £9,000. He was accused of bribing and corrupting voters, opening public houses for popular resort and maintaining that they were hired as committee rooms, and paying canvassers. A committee of the House of Commons convened to investigate the allegations. However, it turned out that the agitators for the investigation, Pattison Nickalls and Robert Bristowe, had offered to withdraw their petition and to ensure William a directorship of the South London Railway Company(see talk page) should William use his influence to ensure the passage of the legislation they needed. The investigation was dropped but William's reputation was becoming increasingly tainted.
William held a "Lambeth Election Fête and Dinner" to celebrate his double victory. However, he spoke rarely in the House, devoting most of his energies to developing his property portfolio. He did speak on 25 June 1858, the year of The Great Stink, to criticise sewer schemes that impacted his property. By the 1859 general election, the voters of Lambeth seemed largely to have forgotten, or rationalised, their distaste for William's ethics, and the re-elected him.
Read more about this topic: William Roupell
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