PRIME MINISTER OVERRULED

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25240, 19 July 1947, Page 10

PRIME MINISTER OVERRULED

PARLIAMENT

Discussion On Staffs Of Hospitals DECISION OF MR SPEAKER

(From Our Parliamentary Reporter.). WELLINGTON, July 18. A dispute between the Prime Minister (Mr P. Fraser) and Mr Speaker startled the House of Representatives this morning. The dispute arose after the Leader of the Opposition (Mr S. G. Holland) had moved a resolution for an adjournment of the House to discuss staff shortages in hospitals. During the controversy that followed, Mr Fraser was accused by Mr K. J. Holyoake (Opposition, Pahiatua) oi trying to dictate to Mr Speaker. Mr Fraser stated that he felt so strongly about the matter that he was prepared to move that the ruling of Mr Speaker be disagreed with. Mr Speaker stuck to his original ruling that Mr Holland’s motion was in order, and later in the day made a statement to the House saying that he considered that the matters raised by Mr Holland were of national importance. , He would have kept the debate from straying to extraneous subjects such as stabilisation and the 40-hour week, he said. Mr Holland’s motion was as follows: “That this House do now adjourn in order to discuss a matter of urgent public importance; that the Government’s general policy and administration, but particularly its legislation, making provision for the fiveday week, and the restrictive effect of stabilisation have resulted in sueh a grave shortage of nursing and domestic staff required in maternity, mental, and general hospitals, as to render it impossible for the Government and hospital boards to provide an adequate service, thereby endangering the lives and/or health of the people.” .. Mr Fraser claimed that the motion covered matters which had been covered hundreds of times m the House, and that while he had no wish to burke discussion, he would suggest, that Mr Holland should confine nis motion to deal solely with hospital conditions.

Staffing in Hospitals Discussion on Mr Holland's motion during the morning was mostly a criticism of the present staffing position in hospitals, and several members from the Opposition benches claimed that the position had reached the crisis stage. Mr Holland urged that a special committee of the House be appointed to survey hospital staff shortages. The former Minister of Health (Mr A. H. Nordmeyer) claimed that the number of nurses in training had increased in recent years, and that the shortage o£ nurses in wards was more apparent than real, because there were now fewer patients for each nurse than formerly. . Mr Holland told the House, in a subsequent discussion, that a committee should tour the country to investigate the position. The Opposition would be willing to grant a pair for each member so engaged. A report from Auckland that dying persons were unable to gain admission to hospital was a grave reflection on present conditions, he Nordmeyer said there would have been an abundance of nurses H hospitals had not been staffed at the niggardly rate set by the previous Government. The present position in hospitals could be attributed directly to the five-day 40-hour week, said Mr Hoiy°aThe Minister of Health (Miss M B. Howard) told the House that what the Opposition really wanted, but would not say, was that compulsory direction of labour should be re-introduced. More nurses could not be trained overnight, she said. She had no intention of being panicked into making a decision overnight about a problem which could not be decided in a hurry. The Government, through its immigration policy, was doing its best to remedy the present shortage. It had sent a woman to London to recruit the best type of women for the job.