HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13881, 4 November 1910, Page 9

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, November 2. AFTERNOON SITTING. The House met at 2.30 p.m. NOXIOUS WEEDS BILL. Tho House- went into Committee on the Noxious Weeds Act Amendment Bill. Mr MA-SSKV asked what steps the Minister proposed to take with the object of keeping down noxious weeds, especially blackberry, on Crown and native lands. He said he knew af hundreds of thousands of acres overrun with these weeds. Unless somethins was done to eradicate the -weeds on these lands, sneh legislation as that (provided by tho Bill would be of littlo use. Mr BUCHANAN advocated the use or Angora goats, who wore the best suppressors of sweetbriar and blackberry. The discussion was interrupted by the dinner adjournment. EVENING SITTING. The Houso resumed at 7.30 p.m. NOXIOUS WEEDS. The Noxious Weeds Act Amendment Bill was reported from Committee without amendment. JUSTICES OF THE PEACE BILL. The Hon. T. MACKENZIE moved the second reading of the Justices of tho Peace Act Amendment Bill, which was agreed to. COMPANIES BILL. The second reading of the Companies Act Amendment Bill was moved by Sir JOSEPH WAED, and was carried without discussion. NATIONAL ANNUITIES. In moving the second reading of tho National Provident Fund Bill, Sir JOSEPH WARD said the provisions "of t!ie Bill would in several years' time j call for the expenditure of £'uO,UOO yearly for national annuities and as- • sistance to mothers. The Public .Ser- ] vice Superannuation Fund had worued i satisfactorily on the whole, and tiio i National Provident Fund was estab- ■ lished on a similar basis for those not ' in the Public: Service. It, of course, [ would not be open to people in receipt | of moderate incomes, but would only / apply to those having incomes of £'200 ' a year and less. The JJill would amelior- ; ate the lot of widows and orphans, and ; would luivo the effect of hastening mar- j riaia's, which were often postponed lor j prudential re.-.sons. By raying l s ;id a. | week a man who subsequently inarrit-s, j and has lour children, secures for him- i self a pension of 103 per week at CO for j the rest ol' his lite, an allowance of j 30s a week during incapacity, and pay- ! mt'nt of £'(> on tiie birth of each child. 1 At death Jiis widow and children receive . an allowance of £1 17s Gd nor week whilst the latter are under the a≤ 6 of ! li. ! Mr MAS>KY saiJ ho heartily sup- ! ported the Bill, tho principle of'which : ho thoroughly approved. He had ad- i vooatcd in the prst that siipe.ranmin- ' tion turuis shtmh't bo provided for orcii--11:1 ry citizens as well as Civil Servant*, i He did not commit himself to the ap- I provjil of every detail oi tiia Bill, nor ■ as to its financial sound"iiejss. The | lio;i-i- v, uiii:i Icive to consider the Bill j umifT dignities, tho fact ; iirjL uifir.btTs were working' at high ; flo h:u! donbU n.s lo whether | tin Hill would interfere with tho work oi j.''rienil!y .Sofiotifs. H« wa.s quite. c(it'.iin tliat money exj)oinl«l on. a j rational provident fund would be re- I r-:ip--'J by the State in tlu» saving cf- ! ficu-il. ;is the result ol' people bs.in.t; 011- - provide for ihi.'.-n.selvea and not Ik coiih'jvj: a burden on tln> country. Tho ISiJi wnuid tend to the welfare and hr.ppiueis <;)' tha-.o who took advantage oi" its Tirovisions. ilr JAMES ALLEN said, while in

favour cf the Bill, lie considered it liad many imperfection.;, the chief of which was the- limitation of its provisions to those having £200 a year. This meant that a man earning £'201 a year was debarred from the S'ur.d, while :i man earning £2'.)0 a year might go on increasing income after joining the fund. Thi? anomaly could be ronjovnl by making the fund genera! in its application. lie would net advocate a compubory vchuro at tlio present time, but it might 'x 1 advisable for the Dominion to ndojit t.liis in future. : Sir JO-SKl'll \YA;M>, in hi..., n . p]v^ > said th,it groat credit was duo to 'tho 1.-tto Sir Harry Atkinson and Mr S?'d--1 <iou for their work in connection -with, ■ the old ag<; pensions. Referring to Mr AlbnV, remarks that the lund^ > ehoald be made general, lie said that " j under the Bill, any member of afani.lv I ever If. could join the fund; it, prae- : j ticnlly meant that it was general in"'ts I J If thy C2OO limit were r<> i moved, it. wo-.ild mean a outlnv ' than th.c country could afford, anil ' would bf> detrimrnta! to those v.iiom t!n> [ j Bill was intended to ben<.lit. The ; whole of tho amount necessary to provide for assistance to mothers would ' j coi::e from the Consolidated Fund, but " i tin" , ; provision of the Bill would not ' J come into operation for five years, it ' j would pay the Dominion over and over ! again to grant kucli nfisistanco to . mothers, by accelerating the birth-rate. If tin; fund had been made general, it ;. would have broken down of its own } weight, ft would be better to await tho results of the system proposed by ' j the Bill before extending its .scope. j Tho second reading was agreed to, ' i and the House rose at 2.15 a.m.