DOMINION NEWS

Grey River Argus, 8 November 1939, Page 10

DOMINION NEWS

JUDGMENT SUMMONSES. WELLINGTON, November 7. ' With regard to the Courts’ Emergency Powers Regulations, the Minister of Justice (Hon H. G. R. Mason) to-day explained that they were of a procedural nature only, and that supplemantary protection regulations were made immediately following the outbreak of war. They follow the lines of the recent English procedural rules, issued under similar legislation enacted in England, and are designed to simplify the procedure with regard to judgment summonses. Notice is reIquired to be served on a judgment debtor.at the same time as the judgment summons is served on him, drawing his attention to his rights under the regulations. This will ensure in a more-simplified way. as the original regulations were designed to ensure, that a judgment debtor is made aware of his rights in the matter of pleading, whether or not his difficulties are attributable to the war. NEW RADIO STUDIOS. AUCKLAND, November 7. The reasons why the Government had decided to erect a new building in Auckland to house the commercial broadcasting station there were given last evening by the Acting-Minister in charge of Broadcasting (the Hon. F. Jones), when his attention was drawn to criticism of the project by the Leader of the Opposition (the Hon. A. Hamilon). The Health Department, said Mr Jones, had been persistent in its representations that the building at present occupied by IZB was unsuitable and unfit for occupation. Various improvements had been made from the health point of view; but even with these, the building was not up to the standard required by the Health Department. The broadcasting authorities were, therefore, compelled to rent a suitable building, or alternatively to purchase or erect a new one. There was no escape from this course. Every endeavour was first made to find suitable alternative accommodation, without success. The site on which the new building was to be erected was a valuable one, and it had been decided to build a four-storey structure. The two top storeys, however, would be used by other State departments. “It is interesting,” remarked Mr Jones, “to find that the Leader of the Opposition is a new convert to the Government’s policy of erecting houses for the people.” NEW MAIN HIGHWAY. WELLINGTON, November 6. The Minister for Public Works (the Hon. R. Semple) announced tp-day that the new Plimmerton Paekakariki deviation along the coast will be open to the public only on Saturdays and Sundays, until the tar-sealing of the remaining stretch is completed. He estimates that, given fi ne weather, this part of the job should be finished in about three weeks. He asks that in the meantime the travelling public should use the old road over the hill during week-days, so the work of completing the sealing of the road may be uninterrupted. A feature of the highway from Porirua to the seawall at Paekakariki is the installation of special reflectors at frequent intervals along' both sides of the road. These simple, but ingenious devices, reflect the headl.’ghls of cars at night, and throw them on to the centre of the road, making night driving much easier and safer. The Minister said in an interview that a sample of one of these had been brought to him from America, and he had instructed that they should be installed in places where they would be visible as a guide to motorists.

“I am shocked to learn that some persons with destructive and criminal minds have been using hacksaws to cut some of these reflectors down, for some reason unknown to me or to 1 any other normal person,” said Mr Semple. “I want to give them a warning that if they are caught we will ask the law to impose the maximum penalty, because Ihese persons are the enemies of motorists. They are also common thieves, with no other purpose in view but to endanger motorists.”

The Minister also had something plain to say about those persons who have been robbing the centre-line of the new road through the Ngahaurange gorge of the pohutukawas that have been planted there to form hedges, with the object of shutting off the glare of lights from approaching traffic. ‘Some persons who call themselves citizens, but who have the minds of vandals, have been taking the trees out,” he said. “I want to give them due notice that officers will be placed on guard, and anyone caught will be exposed. Those who do it are mischievous creatures, who must have the minds of cave-dwel-lers.”

SOLDIERS’ PENSIONS. CHRISTCHURCH, November 7. Of the 219 men who have applied for assistance from the Returned Soldiers’ Association in the last fortnight, 155 were unfit to accept any form of employment, according to a return made to the executive of the association last evening. It was stated hat most of the men did not apply because of an emergency, but beause their pensions were inadequate i , o allow them to live. Classifications were made according ' ? the social security pensions the men i • ‘.-ere getting and were as follows:—>’.i sustenance there were 73, of whom 26 were classed as fit for medium work; 22 were fit for light work, and 25 were unable to take employment. A!] of the 47 men on veterans’ allowances were unfit for work, and the four on miners’ pensions were in the ame case. Of the 35 men on disab lity pensions, 16 were fit for very light work and 19 were fit for no work. The 19 men on invalidty pensions and the 41 men on the age benefit who applied for assistance were unfit for any work. Tne president, Mr A. E. Haynes, said that the figures showed that the u-vcciaticn had to make added provis on for men who were already on some sort of pension. The pensions were obviously insufficient. "There are a great many things that these men could do with,” he said. ‘‘This is not a matter of emergency,” said Mr J. D. Godfrey. "It is a permanent state with many of the men.” “Wages have gone up, but pensions have not. That is the trouble,” said Mr E. Orchard. Mr Haynes said that the matter was not new. A great deal of time was taken up year after year at Dominion'

conferences bringing forward resoluions to place before the Government.