PARLIAMENT HOUSE MAY ADJOURN FOR SHORT PERIOD

Greymouth Evening Star, 6 August 1946, Page 4

PARLIAMENT HOUSE MAY ADJOURN FOR SHORT PERIOD

Lack of Legislative Business ' Presentaiion of Budget Awaited (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Aug. 5. The House of Representatives may .take an adjournment of a week or a fortnight because there is insufficient business to keep members occupied. The Minister of Finance (Mr. Nash) is prepared to present his Budget on August 15, but a suggestion has been made that an adjournment until the following week would suit the convenience of the House and members generally. In that case, the Budget would not be introduced until August 20 or 22. The proposal to take an adjourn®ment was briefly discussed in the House to-day and will be the subject of consultations between the Prime Minister (Mr. Fraser) and the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. S. G. Holland) to-morrow. Prime Minister’s Suggestion The suggestion was made by Mr. Fraser. He said he had hoped that the Budget would be introduced this week, but unless they could evolve a Minister of Finance who could do without sleep—the present Minister nearly could—it would be physically impossible for him to give the accounts and estimates the attention they needed, and have the Budget ready by this Thursday. Members could have an opportunity to discuss Parliamentary papers that very seldom arose. The alternative was to have an adjournment. Mr. Fraser said the legislation this session was not so controversial as usual. Of the five bills in the hands of committees the only one on which there was any strong difference of opinion was the Factories Consolidation Bill. The same thing applied to bills which were being prepared, except for the Compensation Amendment Bill. Mr. Fraser said that so far as could be judged, the legislation was likely to occupy the House for a short time only. It might be a matter for gratification that the bills were so noncontroversial, but it made it difficult to keep legislaitve work in front of the House. Once the Budget was presented he believed the House would co-operate in regard to consideration of the estimates, even to the extent of taking extra days if necessary. Mr. Holland’s Views Mr. Holland said the House was obliged to the Prime Minister for taking members so frankly into his confidence. The Opposition felt that the course the Prime Minister proposed was proper. The House should not at any stage discuss reports just for the sake of doing so. It would be better to have an adjournment for a few days and the public would understand that. He suggested that the Prime Minister might invite him to discuss the situation in a day or so, when it was found what progress had been made. Mr. Fraser thanked Mr. Holland for the suggestion, and said it would be more businesslike to do as was proposed, Frittering away time did not add to the reputation of the House.

“STEP A LITTLE NEARER TO SOCIALISM” (P.A.) WELLINGTON, August 5. The abolition of the .Rural Intermediate Credit Board and the transfer of its functions to the State Advances Corporation is provided for in the Rural Intermediate Credit Amendment Bill introduced and read for the first time in fhe House of Representatives to-night. An explanation of the Bill was given by the Minister of Finance, Mr. Nash, who said the Rural Intermediate Credit Associations in various parts of the Dominion, mainly in the Waikato, would continue to operate. Officers of the State Advances Corporation had been doing the work of the board, said the Minister, and would continue to do so. The corporation would comply with the Act instead of the board. If Rural Intermediate Credit Associations had surplus funds, they could lodge them with the corporation at the same rate that the associations paid to the corporation. The bill also provided for re-pay-ment of a free-of-interest loan made by the Government to the board in 1927, and for money to be used to pay off the public debt. Mr. W. J. Polson (Oppn., Stratford): The bill pushes us a little nearer socialism. Mr. Nash: That would be very good I if it were the purpose, but it is not the purpose. It is all to the good if it utilises the resources of this country for the benefit of everyone, and that is what socialism means. TREATMENTOFTROOPS IN JAPAN (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Aug. 5. In the House of Representatives to-day Mr. F. W. Doidge (Opposition, Tauranga) asked the following question of the Minister of Defence, Mr. Jones: “Has the Minister noted a recent Press Association report from London which describes the Empire troops in Japan as the Cinderellas of the occupational force, living in cheerless rooms without even decent leave centres, while Americans occupy every important Japanese city and tourist centre, and all the best European-style hotels?” Mr. Doidge asked if the Minister would inquire from the General Officer Commanding the New Zealand forces in Japan if there were any justication for the Press Association report that New Zealand troops were regarded as the poor relations of the American forces, and inform the House accordingly.