CABINET CHANGES ANNOUNCED

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 97, 19 January 1926, Page 7

CABINET CHANGES ANNOUNCED

THREE NEW APPOINTMENTS MESSRS', HAWKEN, ROLLESTON AND YOUNG SELECTED OON. W. D. STEWART ATTORNEY-GENERAL CREATION OF A NEW DEPARTMENT Three new appointments to the Ministry were announced by the Prime Minister (Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates) yes- ; terday. A statement accompanying the announcement in- : 'dicates that further Ministerial changes will be executed in the near future, including the transfer of the portfolio of 'Finance to the Hon. W/D. Stewart from the present Minister (Hon. W. Nosworthy) who will continue to administer the Treasury until the end of the current financial year. The Hon. Sir Maui Pomare, who is relinguishing Health, will continue to represent the Native Race in the Executive Council and retain also administration of the Cook and other Islands. Mr. Coates announces also the creation of a Prime Minister’s Department under a permanent departmental head, and the appointment to its staff of a special officer whose duty will be confined chiefly to Imperial and external affairs arising out of the process of communication which is now in force between the Imperial and Dominion Governments. The new Ministers are:

HON. 0. J. HAWKEN, M.P. for Egmont, who will assume the portfolio of Agriculture.

HON. F. J. ROLLESTON, M.P. for Timaru, who enters the Cabinet as Minister of Justice and Defence.

HON. J. A. YOUNG, M.P. for Hamilton, whose new office will bo Minister of Health.

THE HON. W. DOWNIE STEWART, Minister of Industries and Commerce, will immediately succeed the Right Hon. Sir Francis Bell (who is retiring) as Attorney-General.

Sir Francis Bell will retain the portfolio of External Affairs until his 'departure for Europe in March next.

The new Ministers were duly sworn by the Governor-General (Sir Charles Fergusson) yesterday afternoon, and subsequently attended a meeting of Cabinet.

STATEMENT BY PRIME MINISTER

The Prime Minister made the following statement: — “It will be remembered that the vacancy ip the Cabinet caused by the death of the late Prime Minister (the Right Hon. W. F. Massey) has not been filled. A further vacancy has been caused by the retirement through ill-' health of the Hon? Sir R. H. Rhodes, who held the portfolios of Defence and Commissioner of State Forests, and who. did not seek rc-clcction to the present Parliament. Sir Heaton Rhodes. “I have on several occasions publicly intimated that early in the New Year -I would take steps to reconstruct the Cabinet, but before making any reference to the new appointments I would like to express my keen sense, of the valuable services rendered by Sir Heaton Rhodes, extending over a long period of years, and of the great loss that we and tlie country have sustained by his retirement. Throughout his long Parliamentary career, and more particularly as a Minister of the Crown, Im has been imbued with a high sense of public duty, and has at all times carried out the duties of his Ministerial positions with credit, strict integrity, and befitting dignity. I part with great.regret from a colleague with whom I have been so intimately associated since 1919, and who was also a member of Mr. Massey’s first Ministry in 1912. The Attorney-Generalship.

“It is well known that the Right Hon. Sir Francis Bell has expressed his intention of retiring from Ministerial life, and his resignation of his office as Attorney-General will take effect at once, but he will retain the portfolio of External Affairs until his departure for Europe in March next, when he will leave to act as New Zealand’s representative at the Assembly of the League of Nations at Geneva. This,

perhaps, is not the proper occasion l to refer at length to the conspicuous public service Sir Francis Bell has rendered to the Dominion, but I can say that the high position occupied by him for so many vears in the Government will indeed be hard to fill. It is satisfactory to be able to state that he will retain . his scat in the Executive Council and that the Government and New Zealand will still be able to have the benefit of his experienced counsel. Although the. country is not to lose Sir. Francis Bell’s services immediately, yet the date of his departrie is drawing near. I 'wish to announce, there-, fore, that the Hon. W. Downic Stewart will now succeed to the Attorney-Gen-eralship. The New Ministers. "The new appointments to the Ministry are as follow:— Mr. O. J. Hawken, M.P. for Egmont, to be Minister of Agriculture. Mr. F. J. Rolleston, M.P. for Timaru, to be Minister of Justice and Minister of Defence. Mr. J. A. Young, M.P. for Hamilton, to be Minister of Health. Further Changes Later.

"These are the only new appointments which His Excellency has been advised immediately to make, but further Ministerial changes will be recommended in the near future in order to bring the Ministry up to full strength. May I say that where there are so many members possessing undoubted qualifications for Ministerial office, I have found the task of selection difficult, but it has been made with an effort to command the approbation and confidence of Parliament and the country.

“Further readjustment will include Finance being placed under the Hon. \V. Downic Stewart, in accordance with the intimation made last year. The present Minister of Finance (Hon, W.

Nosworthy) will continue to administer the Treasury until the end of the current financial vear. “I should like also to say that although the Hon. Sir Maui Pomare is relinquishing the portfolio of Health, which he has successfully administered, lie will continue to represent the Native race in the Executive Council, and also retain the administration of the Cook and other Islands. The Public Works Portfolio. “I am of opinion that the Prime Minister should not be burdened with a mass of administrative detail connected with State Departments, but should rather be available to render his.' Ministers' assistance in discussing and deciding suitable organisation and staff to give proper effect to policy decisions. "I take this opportunity to announce that whilst I am retaining Public Works for the present, a change in the Ministerial control of this Department is contemplated shortly. I hope to be in a position to advise further appointments early in the year. New Department Created.

"Since assuming the leadership of the Government last year I have become increasingly impressed with the manifold activities and almost unlimited scope of the work attaching to the office of Prime Minister, involving, as they do, very heavy demands on time and attention. In our democratic community the Prime Minister is called upon, perforce, to attend to a large amount of detail work which leaves him but little time to devote mature consideration to many important matters in the wider field of policy. The Prime Minister, in my opinion, should be relieved of much of this attention to detail in order that a great deal more of his time may be usefully employed in the general interests of the Dominion.

"Moreover, the development of closer intcr-Imperial relations, which may be said to have had birth in the Imperial war Cabinets and conferences nine or ten years ago, is now increasing to such an extent that in the opinion of the Government the time has arrived when special provision should be made to deal with this highly important branch of our work. I am strongly of the opinion that all such matters should come under the jurisdiction of the Prime Minister, especially in view of the fact that he is the official representative of the Dominion at all Imperial Conferences, and in this capacity is the person who is invested with the requisite authority to speak on behalf of the Government and the country in the councils of the Empire. "It is only right to say that the start of the Prime Minister’s office, with limited personnel, has in the past efficiently carried on a tremendous volume of work, but I am convinced that the demands have now become too heavy to enable adequate consideration being given to the many important questions which arise in the course of administration. "Therefore, with a view to a more effective organisation, I have decided to create a' Prime Minister’s Department under a permanent departmental head, and also to appoint to the staff of the new Department a special officer, whose duty will be chieflv confined to Imperial and external affairs arising in the course of the continuous process of communication and consultation which is now in force as between His Majesty’s Government and the Dominions. By this means a more complete system of co-ordination will be brought into practice in connection with our Imperial work. The additional expenditure involved in the creation of this Department need not be large, but it will be amply justified by increased efficiency and organisation. "Mr. F. D. Thomson. C.M.G., who has for many years held the position of chief private secretary to the Prime Minister, will be appointed permanent head of the new Department. The special officer to be appointed to tlie External Affairs branch of the Department will be announced in due course, Not Inaccessible. "In annouilcing the creation of this Department I would like to add a few words of a personal nature bearing upon the change. I do not wish the public to infer that I desire to isolate myself in any way or to make myself inaccessible to members of the community who are desirous of seeing me; on the contrary. I shall continue to welcome such visits and to have the opportunity of mutual discussion of matters connected with the administration of the public affairs of our country. “What I do hope to achieve bv the setting up of such an organisation,” said the Prime Minister in conclusion, “is a greater measure of efficiency in dealing with official matters, and more time to devote personally to promoting the well-being of all sections of our people. In saying this it must not be understood that the Prime Minister is the onlv responsible member ol the Government, but experience has proved that very often there is a tendency on the nart of persons to go over the heads of Ministers of the Crown in bringing various matters to the attention of the Prime Minister, resulting frequently'in duplication and unnecessary delay in dealing with them.” BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF NEW MEMBERS

HON. J. A. YOUNG The Hon. James Alexander Young, the new Minister of Health, was born of Irish parents in Auckland in 1875. He is a dentist by profession, having passed the State examinations in dentistry with high distinction at Dunedin in' December, 1893, when he was specially commended by the examining doctors and dentists on his work. The following year he proceeded to Hamilton, where he ultimately built up a large , dental practice on his own account, notwithstanding which he found time to interest himself in farming operations in the Te Awamutu district. From an early age he interested himself in politics, and at 23 won a seat on the Hamilton Borough Council, which he occupied for over eleven years. He was three times elected Mayor of Hamilton, once unopposed. The great steel arch traffic bridge, which shows the Waikato River at Hamilton was the chief public work carried out during his term _ of office. He also conducted the municipalisation. of the local gasworks. I'or inanv years he was a member of the Hamilton West School Committee, was chairman at the time when it was the District High School Committee, and look a prominent part in disestablishing that institution and founding in its place the present Hamilton High School on the Hoard of Governors, of which he has been ever since a parents’ representative. He is also a parents’ representative on the Board of Management ?f the Hamilton Technical High School. For some years he was a member of the Waikato Hospital Board, and was chairman for a term. . For 11 years he was a member of the Waikato Licensing Committee until he voluntarily retired. Mr. Young’s first venture in the field >f general politics was in 1908, when he unsuccessfully contested the Tauranga .•cat against the late Sir William Merries. He stood again for Parliament in 1911, when he won the Waikato seat from the then sitting member, and held it up till 1922. Three years ago he left Waikato for the newly-created electorate of Hamilton, and won the seat by a substantial majority over Ins two opponents. For twelve years of his parliamentary career he was Chairman of the Native Affairs Committee of the House ol Representatives, and during the 1923

Session he was elected without opposition to the office of Chairman of Committees and Deputy-Speaker. During the recent general election in November he was again returned for Hamilton by a very large majority, having gained over the Labour and National candidates op posed tc> him an absolute majority ot tlie votes polled at every one of the 25 polling places in the electorate. Mr, Young is a student of political and social economics, an able platform speaker, and one who masters details quickly. Although a supporter or the Reform Early, Mr. Young is not a strong believer in party, but in political and social progress along broad national lines. He is a mairied man, and lias a family of two daughters and oife son, In his student days he was a fine all vound athlete. HON. F. J. ROLLESTON The Hon. Francis Joseph Rolleston is a son ot the late Hon. William Rollestou, at one time leader of the Conservative Party in the House, ana is a brother of Mr. J. C. Rolleston, M.P. for Waitomo. He was born in Linwood, Christchurch, and educated at Christ’s College. He graduated Bachelor of Arts in the New Zealand University in 1895, and Bachelor of Laws in 1897. He was admitted as a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court in 1897, and followed the legal profession in Wellington till 1900, when he went to Timaru, joining Mr. C. H. Tripp ■in the legal business which has ever since been carried on in partnership under the style of Tripp and Rolleston. He has been an. examiner in law subjects for the New Zealand University since 1906. In 1905 he unsuccessfully contested the Timaru seat against Sir William HallJones. He was elected to the Timaru Harbour Board in 1907, and was chanman for many years. He was Mayor of Timaru from 1921 to 1923. He has been a member of. the Management Committee of the. South Canterbury Patriotic War Relief Society since its inception in 1915, and its president since 1920. He was first elected M.P. for Timaru in 1922. Mr. Rolleston has a penchant for financial questions, and has been a prominent debater when matters under that heading have come before the House. HON. O. J. HAWKEN The Hon. Oswald James Hawken, the new Minister of Agriculture, was born at Kakaramea in 1870, his parents being amongst the first settlers in the New Plymouth district. He was edu cated at the Kakaramea public school and the Pittea school, and commenced life as a farmer. For nine years he did good work as a member of the Palea County Council, and rendered valuable service as a member of the Board of Agriculture. He was also a member of the Wool Committee which had so many problems to settle after the war. He held the office of president of the Egmont A. and P. Associa tion for two years, and is at present on the executive of the Royal Agricultural Society. In 1919 he was returned to Parliament as tiie Reform representative for Egmont, defeating Mr. D. L A. Astbury. Renewed confidence was reposed in him by bis constituents at the 1922 elections, and vic tory was again registered 'in Novend-ej' last. Air. Hawken has served on vanous committees in the House, and is al present the Government's nominee on the Dairy Export Control Board.' In his younger days lie was a prominent foe.' bailer.