WALK OUT

Auckland Star, Volume LXXV, Issue 64, 16 March 1944, Page 6

WALK OUT

UPROARIOUS SCENES Opposition Members Leave House At Canberra N.Z. Press Association —Copyright Rec. 2 p.m. CANBERRA, this day. Uproarious scenes in the Federal House of Representatives last night culminated in Opposition members three times walking out of the Chamber in a body. The disorder occurred during the debate in committee on the Wider Powers Bill. Earlier, the second reading of the bill had been passed by 55 votes to 10, 10 Opposition members and one independent voting with the Government. The first trouble occurred when the temporary chairman of committees, Mr. Martens, called to order the deputy leader of the Country party, Mr. McEwen. and Mr. McEwen walked out of the Chamber, followed by other Opposition members. The Prime Minister, Mr. Curtin, was then brought into the Chamber and had a hurried conference with Mr. Martens, after which Mr. McEwen and the Opposition members came back into the House. Following two later incidents, the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. R. G. Menzies, said in committee: "In all my Parliamentary experience I have never seen such contempt shown for the right of a minority as we have witnessed to-night." He added that it had been "an amazing exhibition of majority strong-arm methods." It must have been the supreme irony of political history that so soon as the Opposition had made the only protest available to it by walking out, the Attorney-General, Dr. Evatt, •• proceeded to move amendments to the Constitution to guarantee freedom of speech and exprgssion.-