Privy Council Appeal On Banking Issue

Northern Advocate, 14 August 1948, Page 5

Privy Council Appeal On Banking Issue

CANBERRA, Sat, (noon). —The Federal Cabinet has decided to appeal to the Privy Council against the High Court’s judgment in the banking case.

Announcing this last-night, the Prime Minister (Mr Chifley) said the appeal would be made at the earliest possible date. .

The Privy Council. which is on vacation, is unlikely to hear the Federal Government's appeal before October.

announcement last night. That, however, is a matter on which there has been a sharp division of opinion among the justices of the court. “In the Chief Justice's opinion the act was fully within the principles relating to section 92 established by the Privy Council. “Apart from section 92 the fundamental question is the scope of the national Parliament’s power to make laws with respect to banking. "On that point a majority of the court substantially upheld the major contentions put forward for the Commonwealth Attorney - General (Dr Evatt) and rejected the narrow interpretation contended for by the private banks.

However, both the Government and the banks already are planning to send counsel to England by air and to retain counsel in England for the big legal battle which will develop. The acting general manager of the Bank of New South Wales (Mr S. J. Gandon) said the trading banks would continue their fight against nationalisation by every legal means in their power. MAY MAKE AMENDMENTS Legal authorities said that both from Mr Chifley’s statement and from a study of the judgments it appeared that the Commonwealth’s main intention was to appeal against the limitations a majority of the High Court considered Section 92 placed on Commonwealth legislation on banking.

"A majority of the court also decisively rejected special contentions put forward by the three plaintiff states.

"I am advised that the judgments of the Chief Justice and Mr Justice McTiernan show that a few amendments in no vital provisions would have enabled those justices to uphold the act in ail respects. •‘Copies of the High Court’s judgments are being despatched to Dr Evatt in London and will reach him early next week. I have arranged for the Solicitor-General (Professor Bailey) to go to London as soon" as possible for consultation with Dr Evatt.” Mr Chifley has already been in radio telephone consultation with Dr Evatt. Mr Chifley said earlier today that the Government was continuing its policy of buying shares in private banks on the open market.

Possibly the Commonwealth might seek to upset, also, the majority High Court decision that sections of the act did not ensure "just terms" to the private banks if taken over. The legal view is that the Government can, if it wishes, make amendments to the act at the same time as it prosecutes its appeal to the Privy Council. CHIFLEY’S STATEMENT "A majority of the court has held that certain parts of the 1947 act conflict with section 92 of the Constitution, which guarantees free trade between states, Mr Chifley said in his k