PARLIAMENT

Manawatu Standard, Volume LI, Issue 181, 3 July 1931, Page 7

PARLIAMENT

If TO-DAB SITTING. I |M proposi! relief tax. H I |||tEFORM ANfLABOUR OPINIONS lyE. | vp; Per less Association. YiLLINGTON, July 3. The Housof Representatives met at ||||o.3() a.m. jl; Replying /Mr R. Semple, Hon. S. Bp. Smith ;id that the position in iJljaregnrd to misted immigrants had alHwreadv been lade plain. However, he taketeps to clear up any misBSffiffipnception lat might exist in England Skßro the effei that the scheme was still operatio. MsS Moving ie second reading of the ®'S ( 'Unemployt:nt Amendment Bill, Mr SffipjSrnith agaiy outlined its provisions. Ejs| te said tit the reason for exempting M bmestic arvants in private homes tas that Re Government considered Maihat girlsshould he given every cn•i j/couragemtfr to take up this work, fgiirhich woid’at least afford shelter and linages. 1 'had been made perfectly lllelear in ti measure that no person in HSfeceipt o a salary which was subject §|||t> incomi tax would have to pay the pfSinergeiic unemployment charge twice. SffljjVliere te: charge had been paid on llfialai'ies .-iwould not have to be paid jfflSjgain. A In resect of returns of income, Mr ™6mith sid that as one-third of the hcome tax year had already ||sßxpired,the Bill provided that uneniytax paid in respect of in|||comes nuld be charged only on twonSMthirds (Hast year’s assessment. nS§ Rephng to Mr J. A. Nash, the Mini Mister s.d; that the Unemployment |®Board reuld still be dependent to a mgreat agree on the co-operation of |l|Eocal emmittees, which had given tfinost vjtiable assistance in the past. iP OPPGmON LEADER'S SUGGESB: I TION- ' The Leader of the Opposition, Rt. SVHon. AG. Coates, advocated mat a Mdehnib intiination should be included Win tin /Act that the Government inImendei j|hat there should be co-ordi:ia-pytion btween the Unemployment Board feund fie Minister of Lands and that in Kthis Aspect it would be competent to BXjise time of its funds in the direction (s|pf tin development of idle lands. There Hjbhouli jalso be a clear indication that j||*he ba|rd would utilise to the fullest ffi»xtent possible the services of county mabounci»-i whose staffs were ready and ||ewillingto assist in grappling with the ||broblei iibf unemployment. I|b! Mr Gates urged that the programme ffiaf lane should be ex|||acres ri;ht down to 200 acres. There nprere mny blocks of tins kind which Mbould b<|brought into production and l&here w.| no reason why all the unMbmployeif young men in the country Sihould lot be organised into small H*rouP s hr this purpose. SsC Mr J. Cv Hogaii: It takes capital to Ho that. §1 Mr Co&s: Exactly ; but here’s the Hcapital tildo it. We arc handing apHwiroxiniatilk' two millions over to the Shoal'd anoSParliament should give some the policy that should be egaffipplied i.| connection with spending ffilnat moiiy.. I® Mr Coats said that lie considered the for reconstituting the board was gjfSund. j; the Labour viewpoint. Ijt The Leaiir of the Labour Party, Mr ifc-H. E. Holnd, asked to wliat extent rathe Government intended to make the I Bill a non-|ii'ty measure. Would it acW cept any iftendment? K The I'rhe Minister, Air Forbes: So i long as as ijdoes not destroy tlie effect of the Bill Ij Mr Hollnd: I think it is for l’ar- : liament to decide whether it destroys : the effect <£: the Bill. Continuig, Mr Holland asked what part the loader of the Opposition had taken in taming the Bill. Air Fortes: None whatever. Air Holind said that he would like to know thether it was true that Air Coates w:s fully' acquainted with the provisions of the Bill before it was introduced. He would like the Minister of Labou to say to wliat extent be had to fume the Bill to meet the wishes of the Reform Party. “I hav. my own information,” Air Holland .-dded. Air Cotes: The lion, gentleman is lacking i. information. Air Ho’and protested against the rate of the wtges tax being the same for the man on a very small salary as it was for he man with a much larger ojie. It ras threepence, in the pound for everbody. Air Snith: The man with the big salary ecitributes towards the Consolidated Find which provides the subAlr Hcland declared that everybody contributd towards the Consolidated Fund in me form or another. He claim-i ed that r would be better to substitute the Pubi: AVoi'ks Department for the IJnemploynent Board and co-ordinate tlie aetiviaes of other departments of State accirdingly. While the Bill imposed a luges tax on women it did not specifically" state that work would lie found for those women who were out of work. Hie problem of unemployed women wafas serious as that of unemployed meiAVliat the Labour members complained about was tlie inequality of the tax anc tlie fact that while the contributions lid been increased there was still no drillite indication that work would be irovided on a basis that would cnabe the unemployed to support themseves and their dependent Air A. Il.rris said he did not think anvone con I reasonably oppose tlie proposals of the Government which represented ailnttempt to with tlie problem. TlsJ most disquieting leature was tli danger that, in spite of the i ll crea-cq contributions, tie would be no better iff this time next year Air D. G. lullivan strongly protested against applying the tax to relief workers Ho inqirred ivlietlier any at tention had beei Sgiven to the question of how work wiS to be provided for women and girl] Had the board any scheme in mi.fl? The House adjourned at i p m.

\ report olthe earlier portion of the debate o.| the bill appears on page 2. _