Labour plan for govt reform

Press, 14 May 1981, Page 3

Labour plan for govt reform

Parliamentary Reporter Wide-ranging proposals on Parliamentary reform and open government were released to 600 delegates at the Labour Party conference in Wellington yesterday by the shadow Minister of Constitutional Affairs (Mr G. W. R. Palmer). Mr Palmer said that a three-man Royal commission would be set up to examine:—longer sittings of Parliament; proportional representation, or some other variant to the first-past-the-post system; State funding of political parties; increased use of referenda to determine controversial issues; methods of fixing electoral boundaries: and improvements to the present system of voting. The issue of four Maori seats would require a special policy, he said. The 1979 revisions to Parliamentary Standing Orders were too timid, and left it too easy for a determined executive to dominate Parliament.

Under Labour, Parliament would be in session three days a week, three weeks a month, up to a maximum of 10 months a year. No Parliament would sit beyond midnight. The total number of members of Parliament would be increased from the present 92 to 121, and the base for establishing the number of seats would still be based on the formula of the number of electorates in the South Island.

All parliamentary proceedings would be broadcast, and television transmission would be permitted on an experimental basis, as in Canada.

Select committees would travel the country to hear submissions. Places and times would be widely advertised, and assistance given people wanting to make a case. Parliamentary committees

would be given more power, particularly to initiate their own inquries, and to monitor better the performance of the Government. The Speaker, not the Prime Minister, would be responsible for the running of Parliament. Each member of Parliament would be given paid secretarial assistance in his electorate. Mr Palmer said that Parliament was being smothered by the executive branch of Government. Members of Parliament were meant to scrutinise the actions of the Executive. “The idea that the New Zealand Parliament has a fair chance of controlling the Muldoon Government is ridiculous,” Mr Palmer said. "The year will be nearly half over before Parliament meets for the first time.” Under a Labour Government there would be real accountability of Ministers •for their actions, Mr Palmer said. The decisions of public servants would be more closely controlled, debates in Parliament would have time limits to prevent tedious repetition, and the financial accountability of government to Parliament would be improved. Many of these changes would cost nothing, Mr Palmer said. The increased size of the House of Representatives — the most important expense — would not come to charge for three years. The conference yesterday heard hints of the content of a fishing policy to be announced in Nelson next week. Labour's shadow Minister for Primary Industries (Sir Basil Arthur, Timaru), said the small owner-operator was being forced out of fishing grounds by big companyowned vessels. Foreign vessels were fishing in competition with New Zealanders, and selling on the same markets. This was an abuse of Government

responsibilities for the exclusive economic zone. “We have joint ventures with no vestige of New Zealand participation on board, yet these same ventures are making enormous profits with export incentives, paid for by the taxpayer,” Sir Basil said. Sir Basil told the conference that the Labour Party expected 4 per cent real growth per annum from farming and processing. This would yield $2OOO million extra from investment in these sectors, giving 25,000 new jobs on farms and 25,000 jobs in other areas. Forestry would be the boom industry of the 19905, rivalling meat and wool as a big earner. Products would be pulp and paper, furniture components, sliced veneer, and quality papers. The Labour Party-candi-date for Nelson (Mr P. Woollaston) said it was a damning indictment of the present Government that only' 8 per cent of New Zealand’s wool clip was processed in New Zealand, and only 1 per cent of its meat was fully processed here. The Labour member for Lyttelton (Mrs Ann Hercus). said that for the cost of one aluminium smelter, and its 1000 jobs, the same investment in agriculture would create 50,000 jobs. “The Think Big programme creates only 12,000 jobs at its peak, and 5000 permanent jobs,” she said. “That's not enough to soak up the unemployment pool in Christchurch.” Labour’s shadow Minister of Health (Dr M. E. R. Bassett, Te Atatu) told the conference that the New Zealand health system was becoming a disaster area. “If our health budget continues to increase at the present rate we will end up around 2010 with our entire Budget being spent on health,” he said.