VICTORIAN PARLIAMENT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXII, Issue 9712, 7 January 1895, Page 5

VICTORIAN PARLIAMENT.

THE LAND AND INCOME TAX BILL. Press Association.Electric Telegraph.Copyright, Melbourne, January 5. In the Legislative Council another batch of petitions has been presented against the Land and Income Tax Bill. The debate was continued by Mr. Wynne, who criticised the measure adversely, urging that by depreciating land they would ruin the farming class. His personal observation when attending the Postal Conference in New Zealand last March convinced him that New Zealand under this tax was worse off than Victoria. He submitted a scheme for meeting the deficit by savings, and by buying out pensioners.

Mr. Fraser said that while fully convinced of the great difficulties in which the Govern-, ment were placed, he was reluctantly com' polled to oppose the Bill. Victoria was financially dead. People who had money to invest did not know how to place it. He had offered trust funds to the Treasurer of New South Wales, . but he was full o! money. He strongly objected to the Protectionist wall placed round Victoria, and advocated that encouragement should be given to Americans who wanted to open up a great meat trade with Australia. Owing to the hostile attitude of the Council towards the Bill, a meeting of tha Cabinet was hastily convened, bob no course of action will be decided till the Council has dealt with the measure. ' It is believed that if the Upper Chamber rejects; ib, Parliament will be prorogued and inw, mediately re-assembled, and the Bill again;' introduced.