Nelson Railway

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29272, 2 August 1960, Page 3

Nelson Railway

Sir, —It is difficult to see what has been gained, least of all in Parliamentary prestige, by the prolonged, acrimonious and, as could well have been foreseen, quite futile debate about the Nelson railway. They seem to do these things far better in totalitarian countries where there is no Opposition, however ineffectual, and no meretricious hypocrisy about the preservation of demoratic institutions.—Yours, etc., M.T. August 1, 1960.

Sir, —What a shocking state of affairs it is when the Government, after two and a half years in office, suddenly decides that the Nelson Railway Authorisation Bill is of the greatest Urgency and uses its majority of one to bulldoze it through in one sitting, bearing in mind that the bill commits this country to a capital expenditure of at least £ 10.5 m. During whatever discussion was allowed not one flrm estimate was given of the final capital cost, the route, number of tunnels, bridges, compensation for land taken, running costs, and other questions that any reasonable, prudent man would need to make his judgment. One is not unaware that time is short to get railway workers on the Nelson and Marlborough electorial rolls and that the passing of the bill will enable any illegal work already carried out to be covered up. With such obvious political jobbery (a Parliamentary term) we have sunk to an all-time low in our political history. I for one make my emphatic;—Yours, etc., PROTEST. August 1, 1960.