PARLIAMENT

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11799, 31 October 1901, Page 6

PARLIAMENT

[bt telegraph.— ASSOCIATION".] legislative; council. Wednesday. The Council met at, half-past two p.m. IMPREST SUPPLY BILL. The Imprest Supply Bill (No. 5) passed through all its stages. CHEMISTS' ROTA OF ATTENDANCE BILL. The Hon. H. Feldwick said he could not hope to get the Chemists' Rota of Attendance Bill through this session. On his motion the committal of the Bill was deferred for a week. FACTORIES BILL. The Labour Bills Committee reported on the Factories Bill with amendments, tbe principal of which are to strike out the definition of "young person." and to provide that " boy" "means any worker below, and " male worker - ' means any worker above, the age of 16. The subclause making the weefclv 48 hours and the daily 8| hours notapplicable to workers getting up steam, and to freezing works, dairy factories, and other factories mentioned in the second schedule, is struck out. and that schedule itself is struck out. The prescribed hours may not be extended during more than two consecutive days in any "week. The proviso relatin? to overtime in bu.sh sawmills, that it shalf be payable only for hours in excess of 48 weekly, is struck out. The subclause which" compels the payment of an increased wage of at least 2s weekly to boy md girl apprentices in each year, is i amended by making the minimum increase os. The "clause imposing a penalty for injur.- through the occupier's default is struck out. AUCKLAND LOANS BILL. On the motion for the second reading of the City of Auckland Loans Consolidation and Auckland City Borrowing Acts Amendment Bill. The Hon. G. McLean said he thought that the provision to extend the rating powers in order to give security for a loan might go further than was thought, and needed looking into. The Hon. W. Jennings stated that though, he had presented petitions against the rating powers of Auckland being extended without first taking a poll of the ratepayers, he thought that as the loan involved was a special one, and had already been approved by a poll of the ratepayers, no further poll was necessary. He agreed to defer the committal till to-morrow. The Bill was read a second time, and the committal set down for to-morrow. At five p.m. the Council adjourned. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. Wednesday. PUBLIC WORKS ESTIMATES. After the telegraph office closed at two o'clock this morning, the Public Works Estimates were further considered. The total vote for public, buildings. £207.250. was passed unaltered. At the vote for harbour defences. £25.000. Mr. Millar moved a reduction of £15.000. He said on going through the Estimates, he found no less a sum than £427.000 appeared this year for defence, which meant lis per head for every man, woman, and child in the colony, and he urged that the colony could not stand it. Mr". Hall-Jones said the money had been expended on necessary works. The colony should maintain its defences in good condition, and he could not see that the sum asked was Joo large. Mr. Meredith supported a reduction, contending that the colony could not stand the strain. This money should be spent on roads and bridges. Mr. Millar's motion was rejected by 20 to 16.

Mr. Seddon said the vote was chiefly for the emplacement of guns at Auckland and Wellington. Everything relating to defence, he said, was submitted to the Imperial Defence Committee, and they had approved -what was being doneMr. Meredith asked what punishment had been meted out to Colonel Fenton before he left the colony. Major Steward, the chairman, ruled the question out of order. Sir. Meredith said he would bring it up on another occasion.

The vote was passed unaltered. At the vote of £749.366 for roads, bridges, etc., Mr. G. W. Russell said the total land revenue was £270.000. including £78.000 for cash sales, while the total expenditure on roads for those lands was £427.000.

Mr. O'Meara, complained that men were sent from Oamaru and other places to work in the Pahiatua district, although men living in that dust-rict were looking for work. The vote was passed unaltered. At the vote for contingent defence, £130.000 (against which is a liability of £140.000).'

Mr. Seddon said, in reply to Mr. Herries, he had cut the items down to the lowest possible limit. With regard to the submarine mining boats now on their way nut from Home, he said one would lx» stationed at Auckland and one at Wellington. The submarine mining boat at Lyttelton had been condemned, and the Ellen Ballance would go from Wellington to take its place. A motion bv Mr. Herries to reduce the j vote by £10,000 was lost by 16 to 15, and I t.he vote passed unaltered. ' The remaining votes passed without amendment, the Public "Works Estimates thus being disposed of. The House rose at four a.m. The House met at hail-past two p.m. QUESTIONS. In reply to questions, Ministers stated — That it would be a very good thing if reciprocity could be obtained with America, although Mr. Seddon did not think there was much chance of it. There ought, however, to be a preferential tariff between New Zealand and the Mother Country. That the recommendation of the Timber Conference, that an export duty of 3s per 100 ft be placed on white pine and kauri baulk timber, was now before Cabinet. The statement recently cabled from Sydney that Mr. Seddon had' already arranged to give effect to such a duty was absolutely incorrect. That no invitation had yet been received for this colony to be represented at the King's coronation, but it was expected an invitation would, come to hand in the recess, and the Government would consequently ask for the necessary financial provision on the Supplementary Estimates. That recent events had fully shown the wisdom of the course taken by the Government in appointing the Federation Commission. The evidence alone was worth three times the cost. ; That the recently announced innovation of the Telegraph Department in regard to the treatment of messages to i'icecourses had been devised in order to facilitate public business over the telegraph wires on race daysThe House rose at half-past five p.m. The House resumed at half-past seven p.m. RAILWAY CLASSIFICATION BILL. A new Government Railways Department Classification Bill was introduced by Governor's message. It replaces the Bill which had already been circulated. Sir Joseph Ward stated that the first division of the original Bill had been favouably received by the officers interested, but in consequence of representations made by the staff the second division had been amended. This amendment, Sir Joseph Ward said, would tend to still further improve the status of the workers in the Department. The Bill was read a first time. STATE COAL MINES BILL. The State Coal Mines Bill was committed. At clause 3 (Land Board to ascertain whether land contains coal before disposing thereof). Mr. Herries said if the Government had decided to work the Cardiff mine there was no necessity to put this clause in the Bill. Mr. Seddon said the clause was put in to obviate the necessity of cancelling leases of land on which coal or other metals was discovered. The clause was agreed to. Much exception was taken to -clause 3 of clause 4, which provides that coalbearing land may be leased until required for coal mining, when the lease may be determined without payment of compensation. Mr. Seddon moved to insert the words, " providing that the lease shall be under the Land Act, 1892," together with a provision that in case of lands comprised in [ the first, second, and third schedules of the

West!and and Nelson Coalfields Act 1877 I section 44 of the Mining --*ct, iB9B, shall a? This was agreed to, and the clause passed as amended. , , • On clause 5 {Minister may open and work • coal mines). . . . | Mr. Millar said the Commissioners in ! their report on the Cardiff mine, %irtua condemned the very property which the j Government proposed to work, and he urged , that if money was spent on that mine it , would result in failure. j Mr. Seddon said this mine was in tue j possession of the Government, and it j estimated that it would take from £5000 j to £12.000 to commence working, the pre- j sent plant, being estimated to be worth j £7000. " , . . The clause was passed without menu- j ment. . , , ! At clause 8 (every resumption to be sub- ; ject to approval bv Parliament), Mr. Seddon moved an amendment to pto- j vide that the Minister shall lay before the , House full particulars of such resumption. | or contract, within 10 days of the opeu.ng * of Parliament, and if a resolution approving of the same be not passed by the House within 50 days, the resumption of the eon- j tract shall not be proceeded with, but shall j be deemed to be void for all purposes. j Mr. G. W. Russell said this proposal ig- j nored the Legislative Council, and might j induce that Chamber to refrain from pass- ; ing the Bill. ! Mr. Guinness urged that the carrying out 1 of the details of the measure should be left j entirely to the Government, but if Parlia- ; ment was to be consulted at all both bran- j ches of the Legislature should be _ con- j suited. He moved an amendment with the j object of freeing the Government from the j necessity of getting the consent of Parliament to its operations under the Act. This was negatived on the voices. Mr. Guinness then moved that the resolutions of approval stated in the Premier s j amendment should be passed by both bran- . ches of the Legislature, instead of bv 'he House only, as proposed by the Premier. This was rejected by 38 to 18. and Mr. Seddon's amendment was agreed to on tbe j voices, and the clause as amended was j added to the Bill. j At. clause 15 (price of coal may be re- | duced if profits exceed 5 per cent.). Mir. Allen urged that some provision j should be made by which, in case the nrotits ! of the mine did not reach 5 per cent ;a any j one year, the price of coal should be raided j in the following year to enable a sinking i fund to be formed. He moved in that direc- j tion, but the motion was negatived by 53 to ' 16. and the clause passed unamended. j The remaining clauses also passed with- • out amendment. • A new clause was added on the motion j of Mr. Seddon empowering the Minister j to work any ship, hulk, or other appliance j necessary for carrying on operations under j the Act. _ : Mr. Herries moved a new clause by which ; workers under the Act would be brought j under the provisions of the Industrial Con- ; ciliation and Arbitration Act. and making i tbe Minister an "employer" under that Act. j Mr. Seddon said he was willing that the \ workers of the State Coal Mine should abide i by any award of the Court in operation in ' the district. ' The Bill was under discussion when the i telegraph office closed at two a.m. | i ;— ~ i