The Legislatire Council.

Marlborough Daily Times, Volume X, Issue 139, 16 November 1887, Page 2

The Legislatire Council.

Nixe out of every ton men in the Colony think Sir Frederick As hltalcer’s r tiou in the Legislative Council to tlio eJfcet that if the Lower House shall consent to re-

duce its membership to 70 tin Council shall reduce itself to

will be a very fine thing for the Colony but if the surrounding circumstances are well considered it will be found that the proposal is a most vicious one. This is what a Northern contemporary says of Sir | F. Whitaker’s motion:—“lf. the j Council is reduced to 35, and Go-j vernmont has no power to make any fresh appointments these 35 ! men can, and doubtless wi ll , to a great extent rule the Uolony. They will, have autocratic power, they will be dictators to any Government, and can do just as they like. Most people do not understand this, and consequently it is necessary to explain how such power woifid bo placed into their hands by reducing their number. A Legislative Councinor holds office for life. The Council is constituted on the same principle as the House of Lords at Home, and the Government of the day has power to appoint as many now members as they deem desirable. Who has not heard of a threat once used by Mr Gladstone to the effect that if the House of of Lords did not agree to one of his proposals he would swamp them by creating new Lords. A Government lias no other menus of carrying their measures, should the Council prove antagonistic to them. For instance, when Sir George Grey went into office he found tire majority of the Legislative Council totaffy antagonistic to Id's Government. The Continuous Ministry had been in power for years before, and had appointed their own friends to the Council, and consequently Sir George Grey had to appoint some Liberal Councillors, so as to enable him to car./ his measures through the Legislative Council. The same thing occurred when S : ” Robert Stout took office in 188-1. A majority of the Council was in favor of the Continuous Ministry, and Sir Robert found it necessary to make fresh appointments. There was a great cry made against the Stout-V ogel Government because they made fresh appoints to the Council, but when they found they could not got on without doing so, how could they help it? Now if the number of members is fixed at 35, and no Government has power to make any fresh appointments, the result will be that 35 members of the Upper House can snap their lingers at any Government and refuse to pass any measure of which 18 of them disapprove. Thus 18 of the Upper House can rule the country, for 18 wi ll . make a majority of 33, and as they hold office for hfo, and no Government will have the slightest control over them, they will be in a position to do just as they like. It is thus the whole of Major Atkinson’s policy plays into the hands of the monopolists. Reduce the Legislative Council to 35, that means to mako thorn autocratic ; reduce the number of members in the Lower House to 70, and the honorarium to £l5O, that means no poor man can ever again get into Par'ament. Never yet was submitted to a New Zealand Pr ”- Lament proposeU which were better calculated to destroy democracy and play into the hands of monopoly that the pol’cy wl ,: ch was submitted by Major Atk’nson, and it is very likely to be ct ./ied.”