CAPITAL PUNISHMENT BILL

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 70, Issue 259, 19 August 1950, Page 3

CAPITAL PUNISHMENT BILL

SECOND READING IN HOUSE (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Aug. 18. The Capital Punishment Bill was at the top of the Order Paper for consideration by the House of Representatives this morning. On the motion of the AttorneyGeneral (Mrl T. C. Webb), who is in charge of the Bill, it was given a second reading pro forma to enable it to be referred to a Select Committee of both Houses. This committee—the form of which has not yet been decided—will hear evidence on the Bill. “Every opportunity will be given for the taking of evidence,’’ Mr Webb assured the House. Mr TitH. McCombs (Opposition, Lyttelton): Would the Minister move that the evidence be open to the press. Mr Webb replied that he would confer with the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. S. G. Holland) on that point. He said in reply to Mr F. Hackett (Opposition, Grey Lynn) that the committee would hear a petition seeking an inquiry into all aspects of capital punishment—presented to the House earlier this week—at the same time that it took evidence. The House agreed to the proposed course. OPPOSITION TO DILL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH COMMITTEE (P.A.) DUNEDIN, Aug. IS. “The Church is concerned about the possibility of legislation to reintroduce capital punishment,” according to a statement issued by the Public Questions Committee of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand. 'The committee re emphasises the statement made by the General Assembly of the Church last November. In this the Presbyterian Church deprecated the “hysteria concerning capital punishment,” pointed out that statistics indicated the small deterrent value of the punishment with regard to homicide and, if anything, favoured non-reintroduction, urged that the present system of a life sentence should be fully carried out, and urged that while the State might retain the right to exercise capital punishment in very extreme cases, a liberal and enlightened policy, once introduced, should not lightly be set aside. The convener of the committee is the Rev. ,T. S. Somerville, of Wellington.