PARLIAMENT

Grey River Argus, 10 August 1925, Page 5

PARLIAMENT

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, LABOUR PROPOSAL, FOR ITS ABOLITION. (Special to Argus) WELLINGTON, Aug. 8 Last night Mr Monteith (Wellington East) moved in the House to reduce :i vote for the purpose of indicating th* Legislnti',. Cuu.icil should be done uwav with.

Mr Monteith pointed out that the Legislative Council had sat only for 30 minutes in one week, and only for TH minutes in another week. It then sat for 220 lai jutes in the next week mid for but 23 minutes in the subsequent week. The cost ef this worked out at the rate of I’ls per minute, the upkeep of the Council cost £30,000 per year. The Prime Minister did not allow these statements to go unchallenged. He said the Legislative Council did good work, and he claimed tneir revisions had saved tin’ eou.itry considerable expense. Tire short sittings the Council had held in the early portion of tlm session were no indication of the hours they would sit later on, nor cf the work ’hev did in committees. Mr P, Fraser said that a committee of the House of Representatives could do the revising work as well. Further, everyone in the Council could be eliminated except the Attorney-General who already did so much in regard to legislation. The amendment was lost by 41 votes to 12. FRS7SSMFN NOT WELL TREATED. WELLINGTON, August 7. Mr IT. E. II Hand moved to have tho total vote reduced as an indication that tho arcomiaodat ion prof iled fir the Parlinrientnrv Press representatives was insufficient on the condiMun that flu newspapers did not diseri’iiiiiatc lo favour or against any • lection cf 'ho House in their Parliti•inentary reports. Mr Holland said ho did not blairo the reporters, saying that liis expor’cnee of ' ewspaucr work made him aware l>->w reports were bluc-pcricille-l in 'he uffecg. On n division Mr Holland's niot’nn was defeated by 33 votes to IS. His voters wore the members of the Labour Party nnd Messrs Sidev. Crrrioan, MeFCnv. Veitch, Lye Perelle, Poland, and Smith.