Portman, who took a first class degree at Oxford in 1821, witnessed the death of his father, Member for Dorset, in Rome in January 1823, but the poor health of other members of the family prevented his immediate return to England.
Unlike his father, Portman, who was assiduous in presenting county petitions and serving on select committees, sided almost unwaveringly with the Whig opposition to the Liverpool administration.
In September 1825, during speculation over a possible dissolution, he issued an address indicating his intention to stand again for the county at the next general election. He declined to attend a meeting of Dorset landowners in Blandford, 9 Jan. 1826, but expressed approval of their plans to form an Agricultural Association to promote protection.
He seconded the formal reappointment of Manners Sutton as Speaker, 14 Nov. 1826. He spoke in defence of agricultural protection, 1, 12 Mar., when he observed that ‘the landed interest, by conceding that 60s. should be the minimum price, had conceded as much as they could concede’; but he distanced himself from the fears of other agriculturists over the corn bill, 2 Apr. 1827. He voted for Catholic relief, 6 Mar. He brought up, but dissented from, an anti-Catholic petition from Blandford, 13 Mar., when he asked ministers if they had any plans to ameliorate the condition of the poor in Ireland. He divided for Tierney’s amendment to postpone the committee of supply, 30 Mar., and for inquiry into the Irish miscellaneous estimates, 5 Apr. On 2 May he expressed the hope that Canning’s difficulties in forming his administration would not lead to the public being inflamed over religious issues. He presented and endorsed the Dorset landowners’ petition against the importation of foreign wool, 28 May, when he failed to obtain a select committee on this, but stated his general approval of administration.
Portman was named on George Tierney’s* list for the proposed finance committee in late 1827, and was one of the possible substitutes listed by John Herries* in February 1828, but he was not in the end appointed to it.
Portman presented pro-Catholic Dorset and Somerset petitions, 6 Mar. 1829, when he spoke and voted for emancipation. He obtained leave for his friendly societies bill the same day, and oversaw its passage that session. He divided for transferring East Retford’s seats to Birmingham, 5 May. He made suggestions on the ecclesiastical courts bill, 12 May, and the metropolitan police bill, 15 May, and objected to the solicitor-general moving the county Clare writ immediately after Daniel O’Connell’s refusal to take the oaths, 19 May. He urged ministers to make clear their intentions on the wool duties, 27 May, to lower the duties on tobacco, 1 June, and coastwise coal, 4 June (when he moved the third reading of the divisions of counties bill), not to alter the corn laws, 2 June, and to investigate abuses under the vagrancy laws, 19 June 1829. On 15 Feb. 1830 he obtained leave to introduce his paupers removal bill (to prevent southern counties incurring costs for passing paupers to the Channel Islands) and his general measure to permit the watching, lighting and paving of parishes (on which he secured a select committee on 26 Apr.), both of which passed that year. He voted for a reduction in taxation, 15 Feb., and the following day insisted, against ministers’ denials, that distress was general in the country and that the malt tax ought to be abolished for ‘we must take every means within our power to lower the taxation generally’. He paired for the enfranchisement of Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester, 23 Feb., and voted to transfer East Retford’s seats to Birmingham, 5 Mar. 1830. Denis Le Marchant† later recorded an encounter between him and George Dawson*, secretary to the treasury:
Their conversation turned on some recent defeat of the Whigs, when, Mr. Portman attempting to explain it, Mr. Dawson laughingly said, ‘Oh, you are a mere bundle of sticks and will always be beaten’. This taunt rather excited Mr. Portman, while at the same time he felt its truth, and he reported Mr. Dawson’s words to his friends.
As a result, with the other county Members Lawley and Wynne Pendarves, he was instrumental in setting up the meeting in early March 1830 at which Lord Althorp was chosen as leader of the Whig opposition in the Commons.
Portman chaired the meeting in Blandford, 27 July 1830, when it was agreed to implement the Watching Act there.
Portman was popular as a reformer and was certain of being returned, while Calcraft, with whom he declined to join, stood against the anti-reformer Bankes. On all six days of the poll he was ahead of the other two candidates, to each of whom he gave £3,000 towards their costs. According to Grey, this curious gesture was designed ‘to show his impartiality, being himself a reformer and supporter of government’. He was elected with Calcraft, which he hailed as indicative of the triumph of reform, and at a celebration dinner in Blandford, 23 May 1831, he promised the electors that ‘give me but the opportunity of meeting you, and you may depend upon it, you will never find me wanting’.
as he hoped to avoid a public dinner, and the annoyance of sitting down surrounded by many of those who supported him, of whom he seemed much ashamed; and he expressed himself afterwards as being tired of the representation of the county, and solicitous to find some proper occasion of withdrawing from it, so that he might live more in the country, and perform those duties in which he might be more permanently useful. He may perhaps speculate upon a peerage, but I should otherwise rather consider him as fond of the business of the House of Commons in which he frequently takes a share.
Dorset RO, Bankes mss D/BKL, Bankes jnl. 174.
In the House, Portman, who again failed to carry his highways bill (introduced on 23 June), urged improvement of the corn laws, 24 June, and repeal of the malt duty, 30 June, and quibbled with O’Connell, 1 July, and Hunt, 8 July. He voted for the second reading of the reintroduced reform bill, 6 July, and steadily (sometimes by pairing) for its details. He made a fool of himself, 15 July, when, from ‘the rear ranks’ he shouted out ‘Lyme Regis’ in response to Croker’s asking whether there were any nomination boroughs in schedule B, which allowed Croker to argue that similar cases in schedule A might retain one seat. Stating that he had made it a rule not to comment on individual Dorset boroughs, 6 Aug., he nevertheless intervened in the debate on Weymouth to rebut opposition statements that reform was unpopular in the county. He called for repeal of the settlement laws, 8 Aug., and on the 10th advocated a scheme to relieve poverty in Ireland by such an application of the poor laws ‘as would make it the interest of the proprietors of the soil to improve the condition of those around them’. The cabinet decided to oppose the intended motion to enfranchise £50 tenants-at-will which, according to Lord Holland, Portman was responsible for;
He spoke for the revised reform bill, 12 Dec. 1831, but ‘unluckily tried to clinch’ the vote of Lord Clive, who had made a non-partisan speech in its favour, and, as Le Marchant reported, ‘there was no cheering at this; every one anticipated what must happen; the moment there was an opportunity, up got Lord Clive to explain and the country gentlemen took care not to expose themselves to such suspicious commendations’.
Although expected to continue to represent Dorset, he cited poor health as the reason for withdrawing, and instead offered for Marylebone, where he owned extensive properties and had been establishing an interest. He was elected there in first place as a Liberal at the general election of 1832, but retired from the Commons early the following year.