MR. SPEAKER

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 127, 25 November 1931, Page 10

MR. SPEAKER

A DIFFICULT POSITION

"JUSTICE. AND FAIR PLAY"

The difficulty experienced by him in fighting an election was mentioned by the Speaker of the House of Bepre-. sentatives (the Hon. Sir Charles Statham) in an address at Dunedin. Sir Charles said that in view of the fact that the Speaker should not take any part in party polities, and that ho should at all times observe the strictest impartiality, it had become the established custom in England for the Speaker of the House of Commons to be returned unopposed by his constituency. It was considered unfair and ungenerous to put him in the position of having to contest an election with tied hands. He admitted that this salutary rule had not 'been observed in the past in New Zealand or, so far as he knew, in Australia. In his own case, he had already had to contest two elections since his first election to the Chair in 1923. He felt the handicap of having to contest his seat with his hands tied in the way he had mentioned, but it was a free country, and if others did not have what he believed to be a proper conception of the position he could not help it. He was at least doing his part towards establishing in the Dominion tho tradition and custom followed in England, which were founded on common sense and courtesy and British justice and fair play. Sir Charles went on to say that as he believed he would be duly returned to Parliament and re-elected to the Chair, he could not, for the reasons he had given, take part in any political controversy. He therefore proposed to repeat .the promise he had made to the electors at the last election which was as follows: —"I am fighting this election on the assumption that I will be re-elected to the Speakership. If, through any unforeseen contingency, I should not be re-elected to that office, or lScing re-elected relinquish it, I will resign my seat and submit myself again to the electors. The electors would then have the opportunity of hearing me speak untrammelled by the restrictions imposed on me at the present time by my inability to express my views on party politics." (Applause.) Finally, Sir Charles reminded his nudienco that as Speaker he was the servant of the whole House and not of the Government or any other political party. He had no connection whatsoever with any other political parties or groups in the House. His duty was to give fair play to all and to do his best to see that the business of the House was conducted in a manner worthy of the fair name of the Dominion.