PARLIAMENT

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 252, 21 July 1938, Page 13

PARLIAMENT

Budget Presentation

DEBATE TO COMMENCE THIS EVENING

The reading of the Budget speech by the Minister of Finance, Hon. W. Nash, in the House of Representatives last night proceeded almost entirely without interruption. Just before Mr. Speaker, Hon. W. E. Barnard, took the chair at 7.30 p.m. after the dinner adjournment, the Minister walked across the floor of the House and extended the usual courtesy to the Leader of the Opposition, Hon. A. Hamilton, by handing him a copy of the Budget. The House resolved itself into Committee of Supply, with the Chairman of Committees, Mr. E. J. Howard, presiding. and Mr. Nash commenced his speech, which lasted 1 hour 55 minutes. The House adjourned at 9.32 p.m. The Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage, announced that the discussion on the report of the Pensions Department will be taken this afternoon and that the Budget debate will commence this evening, when the speakers will be Mr. Hamilton and Mr. Savage.

Answers to questions were circulated and discussed in the House yesterday afternoon. The report of the Board of Inquiry which investigated the cause of the derailment of a special excursion train near Ratana on March 26 was also tabled.

After a further brief discussion in the late afternoon, the Municipal Corporations Amendment Bill was passed bv the House. Substantial progress had been made with the committee stages of the Bill when the House adjourned on Tuesday night, and there was discussion on only minor points when consideration of the measure was resumed yesterday. The Bill was put through all the remaining stages in about half an hour.