PARLIAMENT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 8258, 22 October 1912, Page 8

PARLIAMENT.

LAST NIGHT'S PROCEEDINGS

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

The House met at 7.30 last evening. WESTPORT HARBOR. The Hon. F. M. B. Fisher gave notice to introduce the Westport Harbor Amendment Bill. A PERSONAL EXPLANATION. The Prime Minister, in a personal explanation, said that on Friday last, while lie was spcaJring in the second reading debate on the Land Bill, he stated that a letter wliich was supposed to bo posted to him by certain natives had not arrived. It was only fair to say that the letter had come to hand. Ho saw it that day for the first time, and ho was informed by his secretary that it was in his room when ho spoke. The letter was in Maori, and that was how the oversight arose. THE WARD-HJNE INCIDENT. A lengthy discussion took place on the incident that occurred between Sir Joseph Ward and Mr J. B. Hine at the meeting of the Public Accounts Committee on Friday. The report appears under separate heading.

AMENDED BILLS

The Wellington City Empowering Bill was received from the Upper House, with an amendment that children under -the ago of fifteen years should he admitted to the zoo and the Botanical Gardens free. This was agreed to on the motion of Mr Hindmarsh. _ An amendment in the Tauranga Harbor Bill (Hon. W. H. Herries) was also agreed to.

RAILWAYS BILL

FACILITIES FOR EVIDENCE.

The Government flail ways Amendment Bill (Hon. W. H. Herries) was read a second time pro forma and referred to the Railways Committee for consideration and report. Air T. M. Wilford (Hutt) asked if railwaymen would be able to give evidence before the Railways Committee. Mr Herries replied that the commits tee would have to decide the point when the men asked. He would remind the member for Hutt that the longer the Bill was delayed the less chance it had of passing.

PUBLIC .REVENUES

AN AMENDING BILL,

The second reading of the Public Revenues Amendment Bill was moved by the Minister of Finance (Hon. J. Allen). Ft provided for the repeal, he said, of section 46 of the original Act, which allowed a vote on the Estimates to override the statutory law. It was proposed to remove this practice. The position would then be that the statutory law could not he overridden by the Estimates. Section 5 proposed to establish a fire insurance fund of £IO,OOO a year till it reached a capital fund of £IOO,OOO. This was to provide for the rebuilding of public buildings destroyed by fire. The Bill also made technical alterations in the position of the High Commissioner and in regard to local bodies’ expenditure. PREACHING AND PRACTICE 1

Sir Joseph Ward said ho wanted to say a few words on tho repeal of section 46 and the proposed subolauso. Ho had expected to find the Minister of Finance prepared to give effect to what he had preached. Yet section 47 of the original Act provided for transfers of votes in the same class, and this section was not repealed. A proviso only was added to it requiring a statement to be made within ten days. What a monstrous thing it was for the Government to perpetuate this system I He had known it to be necessary, but the present Government had held it to bo unnecessary, and had said they would repeal it. But now they were leaving it in the Bill, much to the wonder of the country. It had been proved in the past this power could not be dispensed with, and he was glad to find that the Government recognised the fallacy of what they had urged could be done in the past. In regard to the fund of £IOO,OOO to be established for providing for reconstructing buildings, he would like to say that bis Government had considered this point, and had been told that insurance premiums to cover the lot would 'cost only £BOOO. The best way to assist the State Fire Insurance was to insure with it even np to £12,000 a year in fees and allow it to reinsure with other companies. That would be a .better plan than to establish such a fund as was proposed. A WRONG PRINCIPLE.

The Prime Minister said he considered the last speaker had attempted to mislead tho Mouse in his references to section two, dealing with the transfer of votes. The old section was first introduced in 1900 and was first used to improperly increase the salaries of members. It had also been used in other payments. They had always contended that the principle of the section was wrong, and should be repealed at the first opportunity. The amendment proposed was to see that there should exist good reasons for transfers, and that a full report should be presented to Parliament within ten days of tho commencement of the session next following. He believed this would meet the case. He had always felt that the method of building and main, taining public buildings was most unbusinesslike. It was a businesslike proceeding to insure them, and the idea would not be opposed by any member of the House. A PALTRY CHARGE.

Mr G. W. Russell said the amendment proposed about the transfer of votes was a paltry and unnecessary one. Every transfer made in the past had been fully reported to Parliament. The Prime Minister, since coming into power, had become an opportunist of the first water. He was retaining every power that he condemned when in Opposition, and merely provided for a -statement of the transfer being made within ten days. Mr A. M. Myers (Auckland East) said he believed that the patronage that could be exercised by the Fire Insurance Department if it were used by the Government for insurance purposes would be most valuable. THE REPLY. In reply, the Minister said they had at least carried out in full one portion

of their policy by repealing section 46, It was true in reference to section 47 that they had not carried out what they thought they would. But they might do it yet. It was an experiment in the meantime. The proposal that the insurance should bo given to the State Fire Insurance was not welcomed by that department because it did not care for the risk. Mr Myers: I am very surprised to hoar that.

Mr Allen: That is my information. We intend to be on the safe side by establishing our fund. The second reading was agreed to on the voices.

PEIVATE CEMETERIES

The second reading of the Cemeteries Amendment Bill was moved by the Hon. A. L. Herdman. This Bill has been passed by the Legislative Council, and provides that grounds used as private cemeteries prior to tho commencement of tho Act may be set aside as authorised private burial grounds. The motion was agreed to after a little discussion.

SAVINGS BANKS

Tho Hon. J. Allen moved the second reading of the Savings Banks Amendment Bill, which had been asked for by tho Dunedin and Auckland Savings Banks. Its purpose was to enable moneys voted by them for certain objects to bo used in tho purchase of land and buildings in connection with those objects. The motion was agreed to.

DIVORCE AMENDMENT

MORE REFORMS WANTED. The Hon. A. L. Herdman moved the second reading of the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Amendment Bill (already passed by the Council). It provides that the period of ten years m which a spouse must have been incarcerated in a lunatic asylum before a divorce may be granted, shall be reduced to seven. The Bill also aimed at legalising marriages made immediately upon the announcement of a decree nisi instead of requiring the parties thereto to wait three months. Mr T. M. Wilford (Hutt), regretted the Minister had not gone further in the way of correcting anomalies which existed in the divorce law. _ He enumerated some points requiring attention, and emphasised a claim that provision should be made for mental cruelty as well as physical cruelty being a ground for divorce. Mr Statham said that in committee ho would oppose clause 2 because he strongly objected to insanity being a ground of divorce. If a man had a wife in a lunatic asylum and married again under this Bill he could only be deemed to have two wives and' that was against the moral law. After the Minister had promised to consider tho points raised the second reading was carried on the voices.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

The second reading of the Local Bodies’ Loans Amendment Bill was moved by the Hon. J. Allen. Clause 2, he said, embodied the policy of the Government in regard to the sinking funds of local bodies. They should- be allowed to have their own trustees so long as they borrowed their money outside the Government departments. Section 5 dealt - with the merging of rating areas and 'would be fully explained in committee. Sir Joseph Ward said that in committee he would oppose the investment proposals, because he considered tho old method better.

Mt Wilford said the rate of interest was going up and the Government would have to com© to the aid of the people. The private lender was coming in now and l making his own terms. The Government must assist the public, because the money must he got. The Minister, having replied, the motion, was carried.

MARRIAGE AMENDMENT

The Marriage Bill (already passed by tho Legislative Council) providing for the appointment of dopnty-registrars, was put through its second reading stage.

BIRTHS .AND DEATHS

The House went into committee on the Births and Deaths Registration Amendment Bill (Hon. A. L. Herdman) amendments to w r hich were introduced ■by Governor’s message. This provides for appointment of deputy-registrars, and makes a number of machinery amendments to the principal Act. At clause 18 (regulations as to registration of births, etc.,_ of Maoris), the Hon. A. T. Ngata moved an amendment, which was earned, to the effect that the penalty for breach of regulations shall not exceed £6, instead of £lO as proposed in the Bill. The Bill was reported, with amendments.

The House adjourned at 1 a.m