GOVERNMENT'S CLOSURE PROPOSAL

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 74, 28 March 1931, Page 10

GOVERNMENT'S CLOSURE PROPOSAL

OBJECTED TO BY LABOUR PARTY

"NO MANDATE FROM THE PEOPLE"

In accordance with his intention, expressed yesterday afternoon, the Prime Minister (the Right Hon. G. W. Forbes) gave notice in the House of Representatives last night to move an amendment of the Standing Orders to provide for the introduction of the closure.

The Prime Minister's motion is as follows:— That the Standing Orders be amended by inserting after Standing Order No. 205 the following new Standing Order: — 205 (a). (1) After a question (except a question already barred from debate under the Standing Orders) has been proposed from the Chair either in the House or in a Commit-, too of the whole House, a motion may be made by any member, rising iv hia place, and without notice, and whether any other member is addressing tho Chair or not, "That the question be now put," and the motion shall bo put forthwith and decided without amendment or debate. (2) When a motion, "That the question be now put," has been carried, and the question consequent thereon has been decided, fuiy further motion may be at once made which may be requisite'to bring to a decision any question already _ proposed from the Chair, and also if an amendment or amendments have been proposed to a motion, clause, section, sub-section, schedule, or other matter under consideration, when tho motion, "That the question be now put," is carried, such amendment or amendments, together with tho original question, shall, subject to the provisions of Standing Order No. 155, be put forthwith and decided without further amendment or debate. (3) An affirmative vote of not less than twenty members shall be neees- • sary to carry any motion under this Standing Order. "You have got no mandate for doing fchat," remarked Mr. W. E. Parry (Labour, Auckland Central), as Mr. Forbes [finished reading. Another Labour voice: "Bill Massey jnrouicl not have done it." Mr. D. G. Sullivan (Labour, Avon): ♦'It's tho gag all right." . Mr. Parry: "Let the people be the jim'orees." (.Reform laughter.) At a later stage, the Prime Minister moved that the motion be made an Order of the Day for the following day. Mr. P. Fraser (Labour, Wellington Central) opposed tho motion on the ground that members and the country generally should be given an opportunity of studying the Government's proposal. There did not appear to be juiy urgency for bringing the motion down. It had boon customary in the past that when amendments wore proposed notice should bo given. The Comynittco which considered the revision of tho Standing Orders two years ago linil turned down tho closure. Tho Labour Party wanted time to consider •whether it was advisable to introduce tho closure, and, if so, what was tho T)R3t method of closure to adopt. Ho thought Mr. Forbes would facilitate Inatters by delaying the submission of the motion to tho House. The long discussion on the Finance Bill was apparently the causo for tho proposed amendment of tho Standing Orders, that discussion was not so loiig as some other discussions had been. It might bo that tho closure would be a good thing, but on the other hand it might prove a boomerang, and members could not possibly study the effect of the closure in other Parliament-, by 10 o'clock on the following morning. Tbo proposed amendment was a farreaching one, as it would change the jvhole course of debates. Mr. J. M'Combs (Labour, Lyttelton) ißaid the rights and privileges of the House were involved. He submitted that Mr. Speaker had power to decide that the motion should not come on as tho first Order of the Day. Members Bhould recognise that in dealing with the proposed closure tliey wcro not dealing with tho Finance Bill only, but ihat they wero dealing with their rights and. privileges in the future. Mr. G. C. Black (Independent, Moiufeka) supported tho two previous speakers. In view of the differences of opinion in the House during the present •week it was undesirable that the matter should be rushed. The Prime Minister said his object was to get ou with the business. In ordinary circumstances, if there was unlimited time, he would not have taken such a step. The business was urgent and he desired to get it done. He guaranteed to say that Mr. Fraser ■would not require to look at a single (authority on tho subject, and that he had it all at his fingers' ends. The motion was taken to a division by tho Labour Party, and was carried by 49 votes to 24, Messrs. G. C. Black (Independent, Motueka), J. S. Fletcher (Independent, Grey Lynn), C. A. Wilkinson (Independent, Egmont), and J. T. Hogan (Independent, Eangitikoi), voting with the Labour Party.