MR. ALLEN’S FIRST BUDGET.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume II, Issue 199, 6 August 1912, Page 5

MR. ALLEN’S FIRST BUDGET.

THE LATEST GOSSIP. BUDGET AWAITED WITH INTEREST. [BY TELEGRAPH —SPECIAL.I Wellington. Aug. 6. Very great interest is being exhibited both in and out of Parliament in the Budget speech which is to he delivered by the Minister of Finance in the House to-night. Ministers are exceedingly recitent as to what the proposals of the Government will be* mere especially in view of the statement made by Air. F. M. B. Fisher at Saturday night’s ”at home’’ that he, honestly believed when the Minister of Finance delivered his Budget it would be the best Budget delivered in the Senate during the last 25 years. Jn the course of various speeches the Prime Minister has declared that the Budget proposals will provide for financial reform, reform cf the Legislative Council, and a reforming of the land policy which would satisfy pioneers who were fighting their battles out in the back blocks. Reform of the public service > n lines of Air. A. L. Herdman’s Bill, planning the service under the control of an independent board, and the reform of Parliamentary methods will be included. The Budget will also put forward a scheme devised to increase the credit of the Dominion. It is also probable it will propose an increase in the graduated land tax. In regard to labour the Budget uill propo.-c that the Arbitration Court sh?Jl ho prc-sided oyit hv a layman: al-o that jtrikes shall be instituted and remain subject io a second ballot of the strikers with a view to pre venting domination ' f tin se strikers who are anxious for settlement. V ith regard to native lard legislation it is understood that the contention of the Government is merely to amend the existing .Act this session, in the direction of facilitating tiic disposition of such lands, but that next session a comprehen-

sive measure will be introduced abolishing the present cumbrous and expensive system of Maori Land Boards, and generally simplifying the manner in which Native land settlement can be carried out. It is also understood that the Budget will propose an increase vote in support of Imperial naval expenditure. Wellington, Aug. 6. “I don’t suppose we shall be able to give legislative effect to all our proposals this session,” said the Prime Minister (the Hon. W. F. Massey), in the Town Hall yesterday evening, when referring to the Budget which is to be delivered this' evening. ‘’But we have put our hands to the plough,” he added, "and there will be no turning back. We shall ask Parliament to give effect to every principle we have contended for years gone by.” He then said that the Government proposed to provide for financial reform. for reform of the Legislative Council (applause), for reform of the public service (renewed applause), and for such land reform as would satisfy the people who were fighting the battles of the country in the back blocks (more applause). Th ; Government also proposed to provide the much needed reform of the country legislative method. While we are anxious to see that the people of this country will get fair and good value for their money and that there will be economies studied, the Government will not be parsimonious, and no man in the service of the State will be worse off than he is to-day and many will be better off. (Applause.) A CANDID CRITIC. The meeting was enlivened with a characteristic speech by Dr. Newman, member for Wellington East, who adopted the roll of candid critic. He mentioned several axes which he had to grind, including a post office at Pahiatua and naively declared that they knew “what the Government was to-day,” but, "he added,” “I don’t know what they will be when they grow older.’ TRAFFICKING IN NATIVE LANDS. Wellington, Aug. 6. To-day Mr. J. Craigie, member for Timaru, gave notice to ask the Government whether it is aware that large areas of Native lands are being purchased by syndicates and land speculators. In view of this fact, he wanted to know whether the Government would introduce an amendment, to the Native Land Act in the direction of prohibiting the sale of Native lands to any person or persons except the Government. “Evidently,” he said, “it was in the best interests of the Natives to protect them from land speculators and in the best interest of the people of the Dominion that the land should be purchased only by the Government with the view to sub-division.”