LARGE PARLIAMENT

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22192, 20 August 1935, Page 12

LARGE PARLIAMENT

REPRESENTATION BASIS: REDUCTION OR MAINTENANCE / jvflp ARGUMENTS DISCUSSED f: SOME COMPARATIVE FIGURES |c The probability of the South Island 11 losing a scat or two to the North Island!!® when the Representation Commission WM sits after the census results of nest't ? V ,r April are known, becomes a matter ofltif immediate interest to all political inrj|§t terests. Possible alterations in the '. boundaries to eliminate electoral trirts are being discussed in the South Wk while the North looks on and, maybe smiles. , Think, however, what turmoil there » • would" be if there was a prospect oftthi s \ ruling party deciding to alter the basis 1 '< of representation with a view, to re-. ; l| ducing the membership of the House of if - Representatives to, say, 50, There are fill many people who believe that a change?'rJ in that direction is desirable in the •" interests of economy and justifiable on the grounds of efficiency. A House of ? 80 —76 Europeans and four Maori mem-! :-f bers—for a population of one and a-half | 4 millions gives a numerical, standard of* '■ representation that is exceedingly high.i The population figures for the various ' European electorates, given in the last * returns, range from about 15,000 to ' 20,000 and the rolls of electors from ;• ' about 900Qito 18,000, the majority being? a few thousands inside these extreme* totals -0 *„ Australia and Europe I In some of tho Australian States the ■ basis of representation is comparable ' with that of New Zealand. Switzerland t'p has a system that gives one member for f every 22,000 and Belgium fixes thp ■?. standard at one for 40,000. Denmark !>, and Norway are rather more generous I and the Irish Free State has about the 4 Eame basis as New Zealand. But in i France there is one member for 65,000 f. and in Britain the average constituency $ is slightly higher. The general rule appears to be that,' tho smaller the population of a country? the higher is the basis of representation. New Zealand began on a very high scale, f as did also ether young countries. reason was partly due to the manner I settlements were scattered over the land# and separated from one another by wide| areas of virgin country. Community of 1 interest was absent and the very nature,* of pioneering development made elector-2 ates with small populations inevitable.! The allocation of funds for the develop-! ment of railways, roads and bridges created rivalries which looked to voting;* strength in Parliament for satisfaction. 5 A further justification for adopting low population standard for was the difficulty of travel in rural di»-| * tricts. Many a member had a stem tasks every year in touring his district on j horseback. Disabilities Removed Railways and roads, the telegraph,| the telephone and the motor-car hare| changed the conditions of a not distant past, but still we have a Housa| of Representatives with 7b European:: seats. It was remarked by an Auckland t. businessman that this same argumei?fe£r that were put forward by the present Government in favour of reducing the ■ cost of local government by a system of amalgamating authorities w here : j local interests did not conflict, applied ; • with equal force to reducing the strength and cost of the House of Representatives. "But," he said, am afraid that party politics will prevent such a klcsirable reform. I see one political platform that has been issued that a reduction in the member - ship of the Legislative Council is proposed in the interests of efficiency and , economy, but I have no hope of ever t seeing a party making a straight-outj.,- . declaration in favour of a filler Hou<& of Representatives. Politicians 1 ; will -play "with the idea, but to them seats are too sacred, even if opponents » . hold them." In other words, this elector behevos that no party is prepared to "tinker .■ with the political machine in case it . may suffer sooner or later. Holding the Balance "1 know," said another man, "that - there is a common belief that men-,: once inside the portals of the House,-' find themselves in a kind of mutual ■% protection society, where party warfare does not show itself, but there is some y ground for maintaining the balance, it has been set by the basis of repre-./. Mentation over long years. I am not thinking of the interests of any political party. The House is now too lanie f for the population, circumstanced as it,; now is in tho matter of communion* tions, but something of value would be>^ ; lost if through the elimination of, saj, ; 2o seats, thousands of people lost.whati:* might be called their political anchor- .. ago. "For the same reason it is rather a pity that when tho South loses a seat the more populous North should gain one. Something in the old name, its associations and so on, give electors or long standing a se:nse of direct representation that is all to the good. It is the difference between feeling a P er " sonality and a unit. This may sound old-fashioned, but there is often dom in old-fashioned ideas." Yet another Aucklander who was consulted argued for larger constituencies without qualification. Beep the country quota, which is absolutely justified," lie said, "but go in tor wholesale merging. You will get better representation and far less 'tin-po politics. The small constituency 1S partly responsible for the mediocre representation we get. Members are compelled to devote far too much 0 their time to trifles, simply because they aro made the slaves of smau bodies of voters. It is not the real jo of a member to be the message boy oi everv elector of his district, who loots him up or sends him a letter, y™ic would be just as well attended to oy departmental officers. Fancy a ina who ought to be studying some of tne profound problems that hare been presented in tho legislation during tne •past few years, spending laborious hours as the personal agent of hundreds o people, who write to him instead ot tho proper, quarter. It is one of t absurd consequences of a system over-representation.".