HURRY TO PREPARE FOR CONFERENCE

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30897, 2 November 1965, Page 3

HURRY TO PREPARE FOR CONFERENCE

(From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, Nov. 1. The pending meeting of the British Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in the chamber of Parliament was stated by the Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) as the principal reason for the long hours and week-end sittings which terminated the second session of the thirty-fourth Parliament.

“Finally, and a little unexpectedly for me, we were brought up against the physical realities of the preparations for the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association meeting,” he said during his valedictory speech. “I would have liked to have continued into this week—but it is highly important that such conferences should be held here.”

He expressed sympathy with those members who would have to vacate their rooms in Parliament Buildings. It had been asked: Why did Parliament have to do this? “We all know there is no other building appropriate for the holding of a conference of this size,” Mr Holyoake said. He said that, as the E.C.A.F.E. conference earlier this year had shown, the holding of an international conference on parliament buildings could be done rea

sonably successfully and effectively, “and at much less expense than with other countries.”

Within an hour of the rising of the House, the buildings resounded to automatic drills. A return of session statistics tabled today shows that the daily average sitting time, six hours 40 minutes was exceeded only by the six hours 49 minutes of 1933. Meeting over 157 days, the House sat on 88 of them—one fewer than last year. Altogether 137 public bills —one more than last year—23 local bills and three private bills were passed. Twelve public and four local bills lapsed or were otherwise disposed of. Twelve public bills and five local bills were listed as “dropped or otherwise disposed of.” The public bills so listed included five by members of

the Opposition. They were: the Education Amendment Bill (Mr P. A. Amos, Manurewa), the Electoral Amendment (No. 2) Bill (Mr H. G. R. Mason, New Lynn), the Saving Banks (Cheques) Bill (Mr Fraser, St. Kilda), the Town and Country Planning Amendment Bill (Mr M. Moohan, Petone), the Trade Practices Amendment (No. 2) Bill (Dr. A. M. Finlay, Waitakere). The others are consolidation bills introduced by the Government to allow thorough examination before proceeding next session, or requiring some more examination in committee.

They were: the Evidence Amendment Bill, the Expiring Laws Continuance Bill, the Insolvency Bill, the Medical Advertisements Amendment Bill, the Milk Bill, the Statutes Amendment; Bill, and the Town and Country Planning Amendment (No. 2) Bill.