DEBATE IN THE HOUSE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20673, 19 September 1930, Page 15

DEBATE IN THE HOUSE.

SUGGESTIONS OF MEMBERS. CRITICISM OF DISMISSALS. SYSTEM ,AS A SOCIAL SERVICE. [nv TELEGRAPH. —PRESS ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON. Thursday. The debate on (lie Railways Statement was con tinned in (lie House of Representatives after Mr. Ransom and Mr. Coates bad spoken. Mr. W. Nasli (Labour— lln tt) criticised dio action of tiie Government in dismissing men. It would surely be more economic to employ men on useful work in tho Railway Department than to engage them on relief works. Mr. W. D. Lysnar (Independent Reform—Gisborne) said the railways should not bo regarded so much from the point of view of loss as from the development of tho country. lie hoped some legislation dealing with the subject of motor transport would bo introduced this session. Mr. W. J. Jordan (Labour—Manukau) asked whether it was tho policy of the department to buy British goods. Ho contended that American paint had been used on the Rotorua train. Past Extravagance. The Minister of Public Works, the Hon, W. B. Taverncr, said the present position •was due in a measure to past extravagance. The statement that tho railways should be placed under the control of a directorate was nothing more than drawing a herring across tho track. Mr. E. J. Howard (Labour—Christ church South) said that one of the reasons why the railways were not paying was because they were out of date and not run on business lines. Mr. C. A. Wilkinson (Independent— Egmont) advocated a system of freight charges on tho basis of weight alone. He stated it was on this basis that competitors had attracted business from the railways. Referring to tho problem of co-ordination, he said ho thought it would be found necessary in some cases to confine railway services to the carriage of freight alone. In other cases it might even bo necessary to close a line and substitute a road service. Mr. H. S. S. Kyle (Reform—lliccarton) said it was time political railways were abolished. Mr. M. J. Savage (Labour —Auckland West) said railways should be regarded as a social service and whether they paid or not was not an important point. Mr. F. Waite (Reform —Clutha) said in tho past railways had been the best means of opening up the country, but it was questionable whether they were to-day. Value as Public Utility. The Leader of the Labour Party said if the day ever came when the country rejected the idea of railways as a public utility and treated .them as a business concern, it would have .to credit them with the value to the country that had resulted from their construction and maintenance. It would be a difficult task to assess that value. While the Minister on the one hand was explaining that there was not enough work to keep all employees engaged, the general manager had reported there was a crying need for rolling stock. The dismissal of men from the workshops could not bo justified. It struck first nt the men because they suffered most, and secondly, through the men, at the whole community. Furthermore, the failure to provide efficient rolling stock was one of the contributing factors to tho losses. Mr. H. G. Dickie (Reform —Patea) considered the general manager would be able to attain good results if he wero given a free hand. Mr. C. L. Carr (Labour —Timaru) expressed the opinion that the introduction of lighter and faster trains would produce more satisfactory results. Appeal by Mr. Ransom. Shortly before 11.30 p.m. Mr. Ransom appealed to tho House to put the Statement through before midnight, the hour scheduled for tho rising of the House, because the House would not be sitting tomorrow afternoon or on Monday. Replying to the debate, Mr. Veitch assured tho House he had listened carefully to all that had been said by members. He had made a note of . the points raised and all of them would be considered when they came to reconstruct the policy of the department in the light of the report of the commission now sitting.

Tlie Minister added that the cost of repairing rolling stock liad been a serious drain on railway finances. Since tho general manager's report had been compiled, £210,000 had been provided for the purchase of material to bo worked into manufacture of rolling stock. That material, he understood, was already on tho water. In addition, £120,000 had been made available to be used for fabricating rolling stock. The total of these two sums would bo sufficient to keep the workshops going. The deficiency explained in the general manager's report had already been met. The. House then proceeded to consider the Railway Estimates.