EVENING SITTING

Press, Volume L, Issue 15022, 17 July 1914, Page 8

EVENING SITTING

Tlio House resumed at, 7.30 p.m. ELECTION OF MINISTERS BILL. Air . . A- 11ANAN moved the second reading oi the Election ol Minister, and Party Government He form Hill. Ho urged'that the Cabinet of the <lay was tho master, instead of the servant of Pari lament. Private members had littlo say in tho House ; the party machin . ruled everything. This also applied to tho Press;, reports were distorted to suit party purposes. lteporte of committees of Parliament were at present partisan. To serve national 111----?erests, it would bo wise to destroy party go.ernment. Measures should be considered upon their merit-, apart from party government. The position to-day was that the Government ruled Parliament, instead of Parliament ruling the Government. Pointing to Australia, he said thero was now a double dissolution as tho result of party government. In this and other cases money was being wasted through party wrangling. Mr ELL. said that while the party system existed, ho was compelled, more or less to fall in with it, but he would welcome a chango to non-party government. Frequently proposals were made by a Government which were not favour__ by-its p/irty, but members had to support such proposals because ot tho party. It did not necessarily lotlow that members of a Government wero the most capable men in a Parlia•ment. ~ , . ~ , .„ Mr McCALLUM said ho failed to see that any advantage could be gained ! by adoptine the Bill. 'Mr ANDERSON said ho thought tha Hill a good one. though Mr Hana-i would have been wise to alter it in respect to the allocation of portfolios. Whether or not the Bill was carried they would have before ,long to consider the oiies+ion of increasing the number of Ministers. Much was done by party government which would not be done by free members. Party government also tended to place power in the hands of ono man till his power declined. By having an elective executive members of Parliament wou'.d rule instead of the Cabinet. Mr P. C. WEBB held that tho Government in any case would represent the dominant party. It was not possible to get non-party government in the House while party warfare took place outside. The remedy was proportional representation. Mr J. G. COATES sai . an elective executive was an ideal way of selecting a Ministry, but opinion in the country was formed upon party lines. He thought they were perhaps ahead of the times in attempting to do away with party government. He would however, vote for tho Bill. Mr J. McCOMBS said ho would always voto to placo power in the hands of the. members of the House. At' present legislation was controlled by Cabinet. The Bill would not get rid of all tho evils of party government, but it would givo Parliament a hotter hold over its executive officers. Mr A. 'HARRIS said ho agreed that ifc was unfortunate that party politics prevailed. The greatest number of members in the House were nob divided by politics but by party prejudices. _ . , ~ Mr J. A. YOUNG supported tin Bill. Tho party sy3tom was handed down to them from the past, hut they had a right to improve the machinery of government. tJnder non-party government a Ministry would feel that it was free to serve the country as a whole, and not its party. The will of Parliament should be expressed and i;ot the will of one man at the head of a Cabinet. The I -11 was read a second time. Tho Houso rose at 0.10 a.m.