AUCKLAND WATERSIDERS

Greymouth Evening Star, 9 December 1937, Page 9

AUCKLAND WATERSIDERS

HOUSE DISCUSSES DISPUTE

MINISTER CENSURES MEN

' [per press association.]

WELLINGTON, December 8. When the House met at 2.30. p.m., Mr W J.- Polson moved the adjournment of the House in order to discuss the position on the waterfront m Auckland A lengthy discussion then arose, on < A point of order moved by Hon. P. Fraser, who submitted that Mr. Poison’s motion for adjournment did not conform to the Standing Orders. In the first place, the hold-up at Auckland had been settled and, secondly, there was now no question of urgency in the Auckland dispute, as no such dispute now existed. The Speaker, Hon. W. E. Barnard, giving his ruling on the point of order, said that he felt that he would not be justified, at present, in ruling that Mr. Polson’s motion should not proceed. „ ■ .In reply to a request by Mr. Fraser, the Speaker also ruled that the scope of the debate on the motion must be limited to Auckland, and must not cover.the entire position on the waterfront throughout the whole of the Doyminion. Mr. Polson, speaking to his motion, said that the question was very serious. A demand has been made by primary producers for investigation into the queistion of “hold-ups” on the wat- ; ' erfront, but it had not been complied • with. Such delays caused a hold-up of shipment of primary produce, with consequent loss to the producer. The trouble in Auckland was the culmination of many acts throughout New Zealand which had tended to raise waterfront costs. Auckland was the worst port in New Zealand as far as costs were concerned. The Government, he declared, had not settled the strike, but had handed over negotiations to Mr; J. E. Roberts, president of the New Zealand Labour Party, and secretary of the New Zealand Waterside Workers’ Federation. Mr. Polson said he wanted to know who was to govern the country, the Trades and Labour Council, or the members on the Labour •?/ benches of .Parliament. / The Minister, of Labour, Hon. H. T. J. Armstrong, assured the House that the Government was anxious to maintain ■ industrial peace, and would follow coni' stitutional means to achieve it. .It believed that arrangements between the employers and the employees should be faithfully kept, and it was the business of his department k to see that they were kept. /

FARMERS’ LOSSES DENIED.

He outlined the history of the dispute at Auckland, and said that, as soon as the Government had been notifleld of what was taking place, it took every'possible step to bring the parties together. There had been a lot of talk about losses suffered by farmers and : merchants as a result of the action of the men, but, in effect, the actual delay caused to shipping only lasted three or four hours. The wet weather which prevailed during the remainder of the time of the dispute would have prevented the loading of ships in any case. Mr. Armstrong said he was not attempting to justify the action of ' the men. The Minister criticised the actions of sections of workers who were not prepared to accept the decisions of the Court, or of their own leaders, but who were constantly causing trouble in industry. These men . were betrayers of the trade union movement, and they should be expelled from the organisations in which they had been given the privilege and the benefit of membership. They were not playing the game with the Government, or with their fellow Unionists in other parts of the country, and

thdir actions were designed to wreck

trades Unionism. He took a, serious view of the;position, and he appealed to the Unions for their co-operation in combating a danger. Mr. Coates said that it was an unfortunate holdup that had occurred, and, now that it was over, the minds of the people were exercised as to the future. He stressed the increases in the cost of waterfront work, and said' the holdup had been a serious matter for both the producing and the business community. The Prime Minister, Mr. Savage, said that the Opposition’s claims had been mostly political, and) to blame the shipping or the waterside . workers was not to solve the problem. They had to clean up the position, and there should be intelligence enough among them to see that things worked more smoothly in future. The Government was not going to run away from irresponsibilities in the matter. / The debate was interrupted by the adjournment at 5.30 p.m. BILLS PASSED The House resumed at 7.30 p.m. The extension of the Agricultural Workers’ Act to farm work other than dairying, is provided for in amending legislation which was introduced in the House to-night by Governor-Gen-eral’s message. The Bill is only concerned with the validity of Orders-in-Council extending the provisions of the I principal Act, and it stated that where organisations of workers and employers are in agreement, extension orders may be issued to prescribe conditions of employment, in addition to those prescribed by the Act. The effect otf the amendment is to make the terms and conditions of all farm work and binding, so long as they have been approved by representatives of the employers and the workers concerned. , The Minister of Labour, Mr. Arm-strong.-said that arrangements had already been entered into with orchardjsts, and also with grain and sheep /farmers. The purpose of the Bill was /to give legal effect to agreements, even I if they, differed slightly from the conj dltions laid down in the .principal Act j for the workers on dairy farms. All the J farmers desired the legislation in or- ; der that they might not be brought unI der the Arbitration Court. ; The Bill was read the first time, j Urgency was accorded the passing • of the Local Legislation Bill, the J Sovereign’s Birthday Observance Bill, I the Agricultural Emergency Regulations Confirmation Bill, and the School of Agriculture Bill. The following local Bills were put through all stages and, passed:— Thames Valley Drainage Board Em..powering Bill (Mr. Coulter), Taupiri Drainage and River District Amendment Bill (Mr. Coulter), Napier Har-

hour Board Loan Amendment Bill (Mr. , Christie, on behalf of H ° n - W * Barnard), Hamilton Borough Council } Empowering Amendment Bill (MrBarrell), Cawthron Institute Trust Board Rating Exemption Bill No. 2 1 (Mr. Atmore), Christchurch Domain Amendment Bill (Mr. Howard), Wellington City Empowering Amendment Bill (Mr. Chapman). In moving the second reading oi the Local Legislation Bill, the Minister of Internal Affairs, Hon. W. B. Parry, said that members would recognise this was the usual “WashingUp” Bill, and they would find m it only the type of clauses usually found in a measure of this nature. The Bill was read the second time. The Sovereign’s Birthday Observance Bill was read the second time without discussion, as was the Agricultural Emergency Regulations Confirmation Bill. The Minister of Agriculture, Hon. W. Lee Martin, moving the second reading of the School of Agriculture Bill, said the Bill would prove a milestone as far as agricultural development in this country was concerned. Mr. H. S. S. Kyle said he thought the Minister’s proposals contained in the Bill for the control of both Massey and Lincoln Colleges would meet the position very well, and that overlapping in the wbrk of the colleges would be eliminated altogether. . The four Bills, for which urgency was granted, were passed through the committee stages, and were read the third time and passed, in a little over twenty minutes, and the House rose at 10.55. On the motion for adjournment, the Prime Minister intimated that the House would sit to-morrow, Thursday, from 10.30 a.m. till 10.30 p.m., with the usual intervals for meals. Four Bills remained to be passed, he said, the Petroleum Bill, Agricultural Amendment Bill; Dog Registration Amendment Bill, and State Finances Corporation Amendment Bill.

WIGRAM ALLEGATION’S.

WELLINGTON, December 9.

The House met at 10.30 a.m.

The defence Committee reported on the petition of Leonard Sayers, former storeman, at the Wigram aerodrome. He included in his petition certain .allegations against members of the Wigram staff, concerning losses of stores. The committee heard' the evidence" of a -number of witnesses, and made a careful investigation, and while! having no recommendation regarding Sayers’ reinstatement, it was unanimous that there was-no basis for his charges against officers. OIL ROYALTIES

On the resumption of the debate on the committal of the Petroleum Bill,* which was adjourned on December 6, the Minister of Mines (Mr. Webb) said that when the debate was previously adjourned, an amendment concerning the division Of Royalties, moved by Mr. Broadfoot, was under consideration, and it appeared that at that late hour in the session there was a possibility the Bill might not pass before the Christmas recess. He felt that no division of opinion on the question of Royalties Should be big enough to prevent the prospecting for oil from proceeding, and an arrangement had been made with the Opposition, that Mr. Broadfoot’s amendment be withdrawn, and the Bill be allowed to proceed, on condition that facilities after the recess be provided for a discussion of the question of the division of royalties. Personally, he did not think royalties should be divided , between the State and property owners at all. If the Bill were now allowed to pass, he was confident that within six months they would have one of the largest boring plants in the world : in operation in the Dominion. If the measure was not passed, it would be a national, almost an Empire, calamity. The Leader of the Opposition (Mr. Hamilton), said the Bill would be allowed to proceed, provided an opportunity would be given for consideration of the question of royalties later in the session.

The amendment was withdrawn by Mr. Broadfoot, in view of the assurance given by Mr, Webb, and the Bill was committed. '

HYDATIDS ~

The Minister of Health (Mr. Fraser) moving the second reading of the Dog Registration Amendment Bill, said there could be no possible opinion as to the necessity of combating hydatids. Its cycle was well-known. It came from'the sheep to the dog, and from the dog to the human being. The only effective remedy was to get people to stop feeding liver and lights to dogs. Obviously Jthat could not be done under compulsion. It could only be carried out in an educative way. It was a question of bringing co-opera-tion and common sense to bear to fight this deadly disease. The Bill provided for a second effective means, the provision of hydro-bromide, which had proved very successful in Argentine, Nicaragua, and particularly in Iceland, where the incidence was very great. He explained the present proposal could not be brought into operation until January 1, 1939, because there was not a sufficient supply of remedy in the country. Mr. Kyle supported the Bill, and" said the present legislation would assist very largely in checking the spread of disease in the Dominion.

Other Members of both the Opposition and Government, supported the measure, and congratulated the Minister on the introduction of the present legislation. Some of the speakers advocated that steps should be taken to reduce the number of dogs in the country. The Bill was read a second time, and the House rose at 1 p.m.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

WELLINGTON, December 8. The Legislative Council met at 2.30 p.m.

An amendment to the Mining Bill, which provides that the Crown is to be paid 5 per cent, of the goldfields revenue instead of the 10 per cent, provided in the bill, was agreed to. The Appropriation Bill was pul through all stages and passed. The Council adjourned at 2.50 p.m.