COLOMBO STREET OVERBRIDGE

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27408, 22 July 1954, Page 12

COLOMBO STREET OVERBRIDGE

No Request For State . Finance MINISTERIAL REPLIES TO QUESTIONS (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, July 21. The Christchurch City Council had made no request for financial. assistance in building an overhead bridge at the Colombo street railway crossing, said the Minister of Railways (Mr W. S. Goosman), replying in the House of Representatives to a question asked by Mr H. R. Lake (Government, Lyttelton).

Preliminary plans had been supplied to the council by the Railways Department, and early in May railway and City Council officialshad discussed them, said the Minister.

Replying to Mr C. L. Carr (Opposition, Timaru), Mr Goosman said that negotiations with the Timaru Harbour Board for the purchase of land required for Stage I on the Timaru railway station yard rearrangement had been protracted, and were not yet final. The same applied to negotiations with the Timaru City Council about the closing of the Strathallan street level crossing. Until those matters were determined, it was not possible to begin the station yard project, said Mr Goosman. A number of other works had higher priority than the Timaru station yard. Fertiliser Prices “The Price Tribunal will give close attention to any application made by manufacturers for price revision for the 1954-55 fertiliser year,” said the Minister of Agriculture (Mr K. J. Holyoake) to Mr C. F. Skinner (Opposition, Buller). “I understand there is no mention of a Royal commission to inquire into the fertiliser industry on the agenda of the forthcoming annual conference of Federated Farmers.” •

Capital Punishment “I am not prepared to recommend the Government to repeal the Capital Punishment Act, 1950,” said the Minister of Justice (Mr T. C. Webb) to Mr Carr. Handicapped Children

“A statement of the Government’s policy on intellectually handicapped children will shortly be made, and consideration will then be given to a survey of handicapped children in order to ascertain their number and location,” said the Minister of Education (Mr R. M. Algie), replying to Mrs E. E. McMillan (Opposition, North Dunedin). '

Borax Timber Treatment “The States Advances Corporation is implementing the findings of the committee of inquiry set up in 1952 to investigate the treatment of timber with boric acid or borax,” said the Minister in change of the State Advances Corporation (Mr J. R. Marshall) to Mr H. Dudfield (Government, Gisborne).

Hospital Working Conditions “Hospital board employees are given a right to decide for themselves whether they desire to remain under the regulations of the Hospitals Act, 1926, or under an award,” said the Minister of Labour (Mr W. Sullivan) replying to Mr J. Mathison (Opposition, Avon). “The Minister of Health is, however, precluded from signifying his concurrence with agreements- unless he is satisfied that the workers concerned have, by a majority of the valid votes cast at a secret ballot, expressed their desire to have their conditions of employment fixed by way of an industrial agreement. “The Government has no intention of repealing the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Act, 1953,” said the Minister.