LATOUCHE, John II (?1774-1820), of Merrion Square, Dublin.

‘Discount’ Latouche, a partner in the family bank, was returned for Harristown by his father during the last Irish parliament and like him opposed the Union.Castlereagh Corresp. ii. 112. As his seat was disfranchised, he transferred to the city of Dublin in December 1801, reminding the citizens in his address of their partiality to his father in 1767 1767 and requesting government to be neutral as between him and the sitting Members, who supported government. In this he was disappointed, but he ousted George Ogle after a keen contest. Government became uneasy about the Latouche family’s sense of grievance.PRO 30/9/1, pt. 1/3, Corry’s memo, 16 Dec. 1801; Wickham mss 1/46/23, 31, Wickham to Addington, 18 Sept., 18 Dec. 1802.

In his maiden speech, 2 Mar. 1803, Latouche opposed the window tax, at his constituents’ behest. On 4 Mar. he voted against the government on the Prince of Wales’s finances. In February 1804 with his brother Robert he was one of the Prince’s Irish recruits ‘captivated last year by the Prince of Wales’s dinners’,Add. 37505, f. 135; Prince of Wales Corresp. iv. 1820. and on 7 Mar. and 12 Apr. three times criticized government handling of Irish financial affairs on which he was a select committeeman, voting for Wrottesley’s critical motion on Ireland on the former date and acting as teller on the latter. On 15 Mar. (when he was a teller) and on 16, 23 and 25 Apr. he acted with opposition on defence and, still regarded as an Irish friend of the Prince of Wales, went on to vote regularly against Pitt’s second ministry.Corresp. Rt. Hon. J. Beresford, ii. 288; Add. 35750, f. 39. On 13 June 1804 he spoke in support of his colleague Shaw’s insolvent debtors bill and on 29 June unsuccessfully advocated the postponement of the Irish additional force bill. He was a critic of the Irish retail duties, 15 Mar. 1805, and of the Irish treasury exchange terms, 21 Mar. On 14 May he spoke, at some length, and voted in favour of the Catholic claims, in defiance of a petition from some of his constituents on the corporation. He opposed the Irish customs regulation bill, 28 May. He could be relied on to comment on any Dublin affairs before the House, such as the police and paving bills.

Latouche supported the Grenville ministry, but lost his seat at the election of 1806. In 1807 he was returned for county Leitrim on the family interest with Lord Leitrim’s support and voted frequently with opposition for the rest of his life. He spoke against the Irish distilleries regulation bill, 24 May 1809, but apparently on no other subject after 1807. He voted for Brand’s motion for parliamentary reform, 21 May 1810, after voting with the radical minority critical of Curwen’s bill, 12 June 1809. He continued to vote for Catholic relief until 1812, after which he appears to have been absent or paired when the question came on until 1819. In fact from 1813 to 1817 there is no evidence of his attending regularly. From March 1818 until his death, 30 Jan. 1820, he appeared steadily in the opposition lobby.