REPRESENTATION at west-MINSTER.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2114, 3 April 1914, Page 8

REPRESENTATION at westMINSTER.

[ Sir, —'J'lio minds of'tiro iiiea'b.e'rs of fho .British Empire arc so focus.se'] on t'h-tj proceedings of the Imperial Parliament that sorao information in connection therewith, gatheted froirf tabulated htutemoiits, may proio of inoro than passing interest! As is well known, there aro 070 members ef Parliament, distributed as initio r England, 465; Wales, 30;. Scotland, 72; Ireland, 103 members. Ancording to a ta.blc headed the "Franrhisrt in 1013" ('Pago 187., W hi taker' s ■Almanac), the total population lor E'.ig- | land oitd Scotland and Ireland is 46.035,- ' «7U. whirl), divided lij 67ft, gives a r«I imwentative to 63,835 persons. Worked ! 011.6 on ibis basis, England and Wa'es, j with a population »l 30,919,339) should have 6.38 representatives; Scotland, wi'b « population of 4 >733,700, (>8 liiciubcrs (and a fraction); Ireland, with a population of •5,-352,531 t 63 members (and a fraction), making a iota! of 069 roomhers. I'or reasons that will bo given further on, tho men!beta ropresenti'ig f'.actional parts might bo allotted to liclfast, (Ail figures otlnsr ihnji thorn 1 tjiken from tabulated statements tha.t hlivo fippoiuicd iii print to bo- taken -Pi - appiroxiitiatc.) According to tho figures given above, Kngfonti and Wales w<mid gaiii 13 seats, .Scotland lost 4, Ireland lost 40.- As tlii! tables used do not give the population of Wales, a fair estimate in '1 probability .might sliosv that Wafes would !oso 3 or 4 seats. Strength <?f parties show that 'at tlw election in IWO, England gave the Opposition a huiiority of 3.3; 'Wales, the Ministerialists a majority nf, '2-1; Scotland, a majority of SO j Ireland, a mfftoritj* <?.f os.

Since, then, however, t-ho Government have met with reverses, losing sove'rai seats—l 2in all—last year, inclusive of ono It will thus be seeii that Ireland is mow. than over-represented, apd thero ate further miQipitfeag, *W in-s'taiieo., the member for Belfast East represents 16.380 electors, and tin member or Neivry only 2021. It is owing to sucli anomalies that Ulster is handicapped. That is why the seat mentioned should be given to Ulster East. It is qui to evident that there should bo a rend-lyst-roc-nt of, seats, in which with the larger population, woulil I'.e tl,?> gainer, and the present Miiiistrv, which is only kept in power by the over-represented Irish vote, would not have a working majority, if ono at. a'l. These farts speak for themselves, an.l it is left at that far your readers to cogitate over. —T am, etc., GEORGE HENRY JUVIES. ! Karori, Wellington, April 2, 1-914.