PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS.

Press, Volume LIX, Issue 17855, 30 August 1923, Page 8

PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS.

THE NEW PROPOSALS. A HYBRID BILL. preferential and proportional VOTING. (SPECIAL TO "TBS PBESS.") WELLINGTON, August 29. The new but long-promised amendments of the Legislature Act were introduced in a Bill Y ' c 1 luted in the House of Representatives this morning. _ . v. r -u^j 4.5 bad. been predicted, it 13 a hybrid measure, providing preferentu-a for the country and proportional representation for populous city and sub-

urban areas. Part 1 of the Bill deals.with the comrwlsory registration of electors, lerSl9 Qualified to be registered must register within four months of the patsiii< r of the Act, and the offence of j tailing to register is to be made.a cxm- ( tinning one until application ior rcgis tration has been made. The provided are small-os on a hrst conviction and 20s on subsequent com ictions. Changes ot address have to ba notified, but an elector is no t bo disqualified for. not notitying changa ot address. Neither is temporary absence from a district to be considered •firsSSSr* «w. has to notify the registrar of electors of deaths. He shall also report marriages for the purpose of amending rolls. This is necessary because when a woman marries, she usualW changes . her name, and the roll should be corrected accordingly.

Preferential Voting. Part 2 of the Bill deals with preferential voting, which is not to be applicable to the urban districts, in which proportional voting is to be enforced except in the caso of by-elections in the urban districts. In preferential voting tne elector is to mark the ballot paper by placing th» figure 1 in the square opposite tho name of the candidate he desires to be elected. He may also indicate hi? preference for as many other candidates as he pleases. . . There arc tho customary previsions for counting the votes, and as to informal votes there are machinery clauses concerning deputies, the official count of the votes, and the declaration of the polls.

Proportional Representation. The constitution of electoral divisions for the purposes of proportional representation are to be as follows: ■ (a) The Auckland electoral sion shall comprise tho electoral districts of Auckland West, Auckland Central, Auckland East, Grey Lynn, and Parnell. . (b) Tho Wellington electoral division shall comprise the electoral districts of Wellington North, Wellington Central, Wellington East,_ Wellington South, and Wellington Suburbs. - (c) The Christchurch electoral division shall comprise the electoral districts of Ohristchurch North, Christchurch East, Christchurch South, and Avon. . . , .(d) The Dunedin. electoral, division shall comprise the electoral districts! • of Dunedin North, Punedin West, Dunedin Central, and Dunedin

South. These districts are each to have as many representatives as there are electoral districts within them. Thus, Auckland and Wellington would each have five members; and Christchurch and Dunedin each four members. Machinery clauses for preferential voting show that the voter id not compelled to exercise more than one preference. Qualification for enrolment is varied by providing for three months' _ residence in an electoral district prior to .application. The accepted proportional representation system is modified in that where an absolute majority is not obtained, the second and subsequent preferences nro distributed at their full value, instead of at fractional value. Parliament is not at all likely to pass the Bill in its present form. It may, however, be the basis of amended legislation. The Prime Minister stated before his departure that there would be many differences of opinion in regard to the Bill, but he intended, all being well, to proceed with it next session. Ho hoped that the united wisdom of the House would enable a better electoral system to be devised than that which was at present in j operation.