THE ELECTIONS

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 68, 17 September 1930, Page 9

THE ELECTIONS

QUESTIONS IN HOUSE

SCHOOLS AS POLLING BOOTHS

A number of questions aft'eeting th« conduct of Parliamentary election* were raised in llie House of Kepreseutatives yesterday afternoon when th.« Electoral Department Estimates wert under discusion.

Mr. A. Harris (Befofin, Waiteniata) asked whether it was the intention^ of the Government to postpone the taking of tho Census, and whether there would be any alteration of the electoral boundaries.

Mr. E. A. Wright (Eeform,. Wellington Suburbs) said that it had been the. policy of the Department for some tim« to use schools instead of halls for polling booths, and objections had been raised to this practice by school committees and parents, because the children lost a day's schooling. In many' eases the halls were in a better posi-. tion than the schools, and he instanced the case of Kaiwarra, where.the school was on the top of a hill. This had, prevented a number of old people from, voting. Ho hoped that preference would bo given to halls more conveniently situated than schools, even if tha |cost was a little more. Mr. Wright [also asked what was the principle that guided the Commissioners in fixing the. new boundaries. In Wellington it • seemed that some of the boundaries'had" been altered unnecessarily. Mr. A. Hamilton (Keform, Wallace)' asked whether more time could not be given beforj tie closing of the rolls ia, the case of by-elections. In Invercatgill there had been practically no notieai given and some people had been deprived of the opportunity of voting. It had been stated that there was no need for an announcement in view of the fact that enrolment was compulsory, but there were many people who did not bother about enrolling until notice was given, ■ ■■■

Mr. E. M' Keen (Labour, Wellington. South) considered that preference should be given to those unemployed when booth officers were being appointed.

In reply, the Minister in charge of the Department (the Hon. H. Atmore) said that legislation postponing • th« taking of the Census would come be-, fore the House, and there would be no' alteration of the electoral boundaries next year. In regard to the using of halls in preference to schools, he would be pleased to receive the recommendations of members. Elderly people who were unable to proceed to the polling booths could vote by post. When fixing the boundaries of electorates the Commissioners took into consideration the population and the geography. Sihca the adoption of compulsory enrolment: the need for giving notice of the closing of the rolls had not been as great as in the past, but in the case of the Waipawa by-election the notice was longer than that for Invercargill.