EXTENSION OPPOSED

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 108, 3 November 1937, Page 15

EXTENSION OPPOSED

MR. NASH'S REPLY

CURTAILED

After Mr. Coates had spoken (his remarks are reported elsewhere), the Minister of Finance (the Hon. W.Nash) rose and there were exclamations from the Opposition benches, members apparently considering that their remarks had been cut short. When the warning. bell sounded after the Minister had been speaking for twenty-five minutes, the Chief Government Whip (Mr. R. McKeen) moved that the Minister's time should be extended. As soon as the Speaker (the Hon. W. E. Barnard) put the question to the House, Mr. S. G. Smith (National, New Plymouth) interjected: "In view of what happened, no." The Hon. J. G. Cobbe (National, Oroua) made some inaudible remark to Mr. Smith, who again said "No." Mr. Nash said there were several other matters he would have referred to if he had had time. Mr. Smith: The hon. Minister has three other opportunities to speats for half an hour. Mr. Nash: I am quite aware of. that. The member for New Plymouth makes that statement because he knows he has stopped me from The Speaker interrupted to say tnat whatever action the member for New Plymouth had taken, he had only exercised his rights, and no further reference should be made to the matter. The Minister of Education (the Hon. P. Fraser): By what rule of the House ii the Minister prevented from replying to interjections? Whatever it is, it is new to me. , SUPPORT OF MEMBERS. 'Mr. Speaker: The hon. Minister should realise that to keep order ia the House I require the support of members in my rulings. He hid given his ruling, he added, and would abide by it unless the House directed otherwise. Mr. Smith: If the Minister will be precise, I will withdraw my objection. Mr. Nash asked the Speaker how much time he had left. Mr. Speaker: One minute. Mr. Coates: Go on. the objection has been withdrawn. Mr. Nash said that in the minute left to him he would endeavour to reply to one point. Mr. Coates rose to a point of oraer and asked if the member for New Plymouth could not withdraw his objection.

The Speaker said he would put Ihe question oi, an extension to the House

again, and when he did so there was no objection. Mr. Nash thanked Mr. Coates for the attitude he had adopted, but said that he proposed to conclude. The Committee stages were disposed of in a few minutes, but when the second reading of the resolution from the Committee of Supply was put, Mr. K. J. Holyoake (National, Motueka) rose and said that the guaranteed price was merely a levelling out of the London market returns over a period of years. The Minister of Agriculture (the Hon. W. Lee Martin): You would like the same for hops, anyway. Mr. Holyoake said he agreed that a guaranteed price scheme was a good scheme, but there was no need to take the control of the farmers' produce out of the hands of the farmers. There was nothing to show that the farmer would get any more over a period of years than he would have received by his own marketing. HELP FOR TOBACCO GROWERS. In view of what had been promised by Government members, said Mr. Holyoake, he had been waiting patiently for some help for the tobaccogrowing industry. The Nelson district was particularly suited to tobacco grow-, ing, and the people of- Nelson were adapted to that type of intensive farming. The industry .provided a great deal of work for the area occupied. Research was being carried but, biit the growers met riiost of the ctfst; £nd the only thing the Government had done was t6 fix a minimum price. The tobafectt glrowfefs were just start ing a new season, Mr. Holyoake said, and the .wages of the workers in th^ industry had hot been fixed. It Was impossible for the grdwets to pay the wages they would like to. pay, and many of the workers were leaving to go on Public Works. The tobacco growers required an increase of 33 1-3 per cent, to be able to pay the wages paid by fruit growers, and they should be in a position to pay at least that much. o . Mr. Holyoake said the tobacco industry could be helped by a revision of tariffs. The tobacco growers were justified, if they looked into past utterances of Government members, in expecting the complete abolition of excise duty on tobaccb. He* did not expect the Minister of Finance to go that far, but in 1932, in the depth of the slump, Mr.. Savage had moved to abolish excise duty on tobacco. _ Mr. Savage: Rome was not built in a day. _ Mr. Holyoake said the Government had been in office for two years and it was time something was done for the tobacco growers.HOURS IN STATE SERVICE. Mr. S. G. Smith (National, New Plymouth) asked why was it, H/^ c Government was in earnest about the 40-hour week, that certain State Departments were .working on that basis and others were" denied the right to do so? Before tbe Government talked any more about the virtues of the 40----hour week it should be consistent in its own sphere. , Mr. Smith claimed that Sir Apirana Ngata (National, Eastern Maori) had been the brains behind the Native land development schemes. A Government member: Why did your party run away from him? Mr. Smith: I have never run away from him in my life. I have always supported him to the best of my ability, and I don't know of anybody else who ran away from him. . He remembered that some members of the present Government had been very scathing in their criticism of Sir Apirana Ngata and today they could not find words adequately to* express their commendation. PURCHASES BITiSTATE. 7:y Mr. Smith suggested that the Government should be frank regarding the details of recent purchases by the State such as the B class radio stations and Picot Bros.' business, particularly in view of the Prime Minister's promise that the Government would take the people into its confidence and that there would be the fullest information about the expenditure of public money. He was sure that the Government had nothing to hide in regard to Picot Bros.' business, but he could not understand the Prime Minister's hesitancy in laying a return before the House. Mr. Savage: There is no hesitancy whatever.

Mr. B. Roberts (Government, Wairarapa) said that Mr. Kyle, in urging that the livestock be lifted, had put forward an excellent piece of propaganda for breeders overseas, but had evidently given little thought to the risk that might be incurred. Why had his own Government not lifted the embargo when it had the ; chance? It would be a disaster to the dairying and sheep-farming industries if foot-and-mouth, disease came to New Zealand.

After very little further discussion, the Bill was put through all its stages, and the House rose af 12.35 a.m.