PARLIAMENT

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21245, 17 August 1934, Page 14

PARLIAMENT

OF PRIVILEGE CASE. fCLEARER DEFINITION OF LAW URGED j CONTROL OF MEAT EXPORT ' INDUSTRY | From Our Parliamentary Reporter.] WELLINGTON, August IG. The breach of privilege case was the most interesting subject before the House of Representatives to-day. It gave some members an opportunity to crack jokes at the expense . of the Select Privileges Committee, *nd to urge a clearer definition of the . law relating to Parliamentary privilege. A Hastings newspaper and a woman were implicated in the case before the House—the latter had .. printed and the former had alleged ' in a speech that the New Zealand Parliament was, among other things, "corrupt." In each case the commit- : tee recommended that no further action be taken; but during the discussion in the House, at least one member asked the Government to ' review the question of privilege and bring down legislation to ensure that ' Parliament should not lose the re- • spect of the people. Another fairly important Government bill made its appearance today—the Slaughtering and Inspection Amendment Bill—a measure designed to give the State wide powers • in controlling freezing and export of - meat. Under its provisions, the ' Minister for Agriculture will be entitled to fix the maximum number : of stock killed at any export slaughter house, and to control additions to slaughter house buildings, and erection of new premises. Freezing works will also have to accept for killing and export all stock offered by a producer who has raised and fattened stock, on terms laid down .by the Minister. This section of the " bill embodies the main intention of the Meat Export Control Amend--merit Bill, recently withdrawn by Mr W. J. Poison (C. Stratford), a measure which has been urged on the Government for some time. In the evening. Parliament turned its attention to local bills and private members' bills. Three of the .former were put through all stages in quick time, and the remainder of the sitting was occupied by Labour and Indeoendent members urging The Government to grant pensions to invalids, a course advocated by Mr J. O'Brien (Lab., Westland). in his Invalid Pensions Bill. The bill was actually ruled out of order by Mr Speaker, but the second reading debate was authorised by the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes). A sympathetic reply was made by the Minister for Pensions (the Hon. J. G. Cobbe). but he also pointed to the difficulties of the scheme. If Mr O'Brien's bill became law, he said, invalid pensions based on Australian standards, would cost the country £728,000, or, if wives and families were also provided for, more than £1,000,000.