FUTURE RULE

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 21854, 26 October 1945, Page 2

FUTURE RULE

“TAMMANY HALL”

VIGOROUS EXCHANGES

USE OF WORD “CORRUPT” (P.R) WELLINGTON, Oct. 26. A recommendation from the con se r ” encc of the Labour Party last year that the National Executive of the paty, in conjunction with local members o Parliament, be consulted when Government appointments to various boards and committees were to be made and that, in the case of overseas representatives, the party caucus and the National Executive be consulted was quoted by Mr. J. T. Watts (Opp., Riccarton) in the House of Representatives last night. . __ + During the Electoral Amendment Bill discussion he contended that Tammany Hall was going to rule and that the outside pressure groups who

were really running the country were going to tell the Government who had to be appointed to the one representation commission proposed in the bill. “The bill was a cold and calculated effort by a political party to retain power,” said Mr. Watts. It had been said that “power corrupts and absolute power absolutley corrupts” and there was no doubt that was true in the present case. There was no doubt that a taste of power over the last 10 years had corrupted the Government. The Minister of Works, the Hon. K. Semple, on a point of order, asked if Mi-. Watts were saying that the Government was corrupt. Mr Speaker called upon Mr. Watts to withdraw the remark and Mr. Watts did so, but Mr. A. G. Osborne (Govt., Onehunga), on another point of order, drew attention to the fact that Mr. R. G. Gerard (Opp., Mid-Canterbury) had said “So they are.” Mr. Speaker said it was a gross breach of the rules of the House and ordered Mr. Gerard to withdraw the statement and apologise to the House. Mr. Watts said the Government had been influenced by the power it had had and was ready to use the bill to retain the .power it could not get along without.