MINISTRY OF WORKS

Dominion, Volume 36, Issue 141, 11 March 1943, Page 4

MINISTRY OF WORKS

Departments Amalgamated LEGISLATION INTRODUCED

The establishment of a Ministry ot Works is provided for in the Ministry of Works Bill which was introduced and read n first time in the House of Representatives hist night. Amalgamation of the Public Works Department and tne Housing Department is authorized by the Bill, which also provides for the appointment of a Minister of Works to exercise Ministerial control over the combined department. The Bill also authorizes the appointment of :i Commissioner of Works and a Deputy Commissioner of Works. Both are Io he appointed by the Governor-General-in-Council to hold office during his pleasure. Tile Minister of I’uoltc Merks, Mr. Semple, said it was not proposed to smother the housing programme by amalgamating the department with the Public Works Department. The idea of the measure was to bring about a form of organization that would create greater co-operation and co-ordination.'The commissioner ami the deputy commissioner would be associated with the Minister of Works in planning work for the future. Consideration would be given every project which involved the expenditure of public money, while there would also be due regard to the best utilization of manpower. The deputy commissioner would be a competent engineer who would be associated with the Treasury. Co-operation and co-ordination was the aim of the Bill, so that there would be no waste and overlapping. The Bill gave no additional powers to the Minister, but greater opportunities to make a careful investigation of all projects with competent men. Replying to a question raised by Mr. Lee (Democratic Labour, Grey Lynn) as to the desirability of the Commissioner of Defence Construction, whom he described as the genius of New Zealand building, being associated with outside building interests, the Prime Minister, Mr. Fraser, said he hoped that Mr. J. Fletcher would be the commissioner under the present Bill. He was very grateful to Mr. Fletcher, who had come forward voluntarily and, whatever might have been necessary under the stress of war, lie hoped it would be possible to retain the undoubted construction. genius of Mr. Fletcher even if on a different basis to the present.

POINTS OF TAXATION

Clarifying Legislation Introduced

A Finance Bill consisting of two clauses was introduced in the House last night and read a first time. The Minister in charge of the Land and Income Tax Department, Mr. Nordmeyer, said the first clause dealt with the provision made last year for deductions from the incomes of rabbiterg and others in respect of social security payments. The. clause was designed to clarify the position. The other clause dealt with the exemption from taxation that existed in respect of subsidies paid by employers to employees on active service. The existing law had been challenged in the Court and upset the interpretation previously placed on it. The Bill would do what was intended in the legislation 'Passed in 1939. If the Bill did not go through, the taxation department would have to tax employers on the amounts they were contributing to their employees on active service and the State wpuld stand to gain more revenue through the law as it now stood.

The Bill provided that in calculating the assessable income of any employer the Commissioner of Taxes might allow as a deduction any moneys paid by that employer to any serving employee when he was satisfied that the payments had been made for the purpose of supplementing the income of the serving employee. Ao deduction would be allowed in excess of the rates of wages or salary and allowances paid the employee at the time he was called up or in excess of £4 a week. The assessable income of any serving employee would be deemed to include all moneys paid to him by his employer, and all such moneys would be deemed to be earned income. For the purposes of the Social Security Act, 1938, all such moneys paid to serving employees would be deemed to be salary or wages. The payment of moneys by an employer to an employee would not be deemed a gift within the meaning of the Death-Duties .Act, 1921.

DOMESTIC HELP IN THE HOME

A statement that manpower officers had been given instructions to refrain from directing domestic servants away from homos where their services wore in real need owing to sickness or for the care of young children, was made by the Prime Minister, Mr. Fraser, in the House last night, on behalf of the Minister of Manpower. He was replying to an urgent question by Mrs. Dreaver (Government, Waitemata), who had asked whether local manpower officers would arrange for the necessary help to be made available where needed for the care of young children or sick persons. The Prime Minister added that in addition manpower officers had been instructed that in cases of necessity permission for the employment of domestics in private homes should not be withheld, and that where eases of hardship were brought to their notice they should make every effort to provide the necessary help. Consideration had been given to the declaration of domestic service as essential, but owing to technical difficulties and to the temporary nature of domestic employment this had not been found possible.

PATENT LAW

Described by the Attorney-General, Mr. Mason, as a measure making provision for such modifications of the patent law as might be required through war conditions, the Patents, Designs and Trade-marks Amendment Bill was introduced into the House last night. It was read a second time pro forma and referred to the Statutes Revision Committee for consideration. The AttorneyGeneral said the Bill was entirely technical, and included among other matters the extension of the duration of patents where war conditions interfered.

Notice of his intention to move that the House of Representatives was of opinion that the question of the disposition of New Zealand forces overseas involving consideration of the number of battlefronts on which they should be engaged should be discussed and determined forthwith by the House, was given by Mr. Lee (Democratic Labour, Grey Lynn) last night.