IMPERIAL POLITICS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXX, Issue 14988, 7 May 1909, Page 8

IMPERIAL POLITICS.

A SALARY QUESTION.

THE ATTERCLIFFE ELECTION United Pr*R« Association—By EJectrio Telegraph—Copyright.

LONDON, May 5

The Standing Committee of the House of Commons, by 15 to 13, decided that Parliament, and not the Treasury, Khali fix the future salary of the President, of the Board of Trade, and the Bill as amended was reported to the Hoiise.

The "Chronicle" describes the refill It of the AtterclifFe election as an absurdity, Mr Painter' having been chosen by little more than one-fourth of the voters.

EY-ELECTTON.

LONDON, May 5.

The by-election for the Stratford-on-Avon division of Warwickshire, rendered necessary owing to the resignation of Captain Malcolm Kincaid-Smith, who sought re-election owing to differences with'.'his party in connection with the policy of compulsory military training, resulted as follows: —

P. S. Foster (Tariff Reformer) . 5374 Martin (Radical) '. . . 2747 Captain M. Kincaid-Smith (L.) . 479

The electoral issue was tariff reform and the Navy.

(Previous elections for this seat resulted as follow:—1886, F. Townsend {Conservative) 3833, Earl Compton {Liberal) 3344; 1892, A. B. FreemanMitford (Conservative) 4157, G. S. Warmington (Liberal) 3293; 1895, Captain V. Milward (Conservative) 4598, T. Sadler (Liberal) 2827; 1900, Captain V. Milward (Conservative) unopposed; by-election, January '25. 1901, P. S. Foster (Conservative) 4755, B. King (Liberal) 2977; 1906, Captain M. Kin-caid-Smith (Liberal) 4321, P. S. Foster (Conservative) 4173.)

THE BUDGET DEBATE. LONDON, May 6

In the House of Commons, in the Budget deba.te, Mr Balfour presented corrected figures showing that Whitebread, the firm he mentioned on Monday, would hereafter pay £2OOO more than if the taxation wore distributed among the ordinary shareholders. Mr Philip Snowden said he welcomed the Budget, because it took from the rich to give to the poor. His object was to make the poor richer and the rich poorer. There was no other way under Heaven whereby the poor could be made better off.

Mr Asquith justified the Budget as in accordance with free trade, and because it was adequate to meet the necessities of 1909 and the necessities or future years without taxing the necessaries of life. He described spirits and tobacco as luxuries or superfluities. He predioted that the consolidation of licenses and the raising of prices would insure the stability and prosperity of the brewing industry. Mr Austen Chamberlain severely criticised the proposed destruction of the old sinking fund and the. iucreas© of the income tax. Mr C. F. Masterman said that he did not agree with Mr Snowden thafe the poorer classes should pay no taxes. The motion to apply the closure was then carried by 308 to 200, amid cries of "Resign," "Withdraw the Budget."

A motion imposing the tea duty ■was Toted for by 332 to 179.

THE DEATH. SENTENCE,

LONDON. May 6,

In the House of Lords Lord Alveretone's Bill, which' provides for simply recording without pronouncing the death sentence in cases of child murder by mothers when they are unlikely to be executed, was read a second time by So to 18.