HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

New Zealand Times, Volume XLVI, Issue 10685, 3 September 1920, Page 6

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

THE EDUCATION QUESTION TOTAL EXPENDITURE' .£2,624,000. The House sat at 2.30 p.m. yesterday. The Hon. C. J. Parr moved to lay the report of the, .Minister for Education- on the table. The report stated:— _ "The total expenditure by,the Education Department for the year 1919-20 wae , £S',54A,wiV," "ata'." increase of £557,776 oy-er. the expenditure, for the previous yeai.: and an increase of .£1,032,618 over thej corresponding expenditure five years ago. If to this expenditure is added the in-1 come derived by secondary schools and; university colleges from reserves (most* of which was expended), the total ex-1 penditure, amounts to .£2,624,00.0, or -£2 3s 4d per head of the population. Also , £4500 is expended by the Mines Department on the schools of mines. During the year ending March 31st, 1320, applications were received by the Depart-. ment from Education Boards for grams j for new. public school buildings, addi-j tion3, residences, sites, etc, to a" total | amount of .£496,153, as compared with; £238,817 in 1918-19. This is apart irom schools established in buildings tor which .no grant is made except by.way of rent. The departmental expenditure for the vear was .£100,381, and at the lend of the financial year the commitments totalled .£308,083. Thirty-five new schools of varying fiizes were erected, f#.ty-seven were enlarged, and two were rebuilt; six residences wore also erected and two -were: enlarged. During the last six financial years the amounts authorised for publiclechools alone were:-1914-15, £54,895 r 1915-16, .£34,413; 1916-17, .£36,973 1917-18,: ■J868,700; 1918-19, ia24,162; 1919-20, .£819,225." For 1919, the number of schools was 2400, an increase of 35; the number of children on the weekly roll averaged 193,655, as against 191,383 for the previous year; the average attendance for the whole year 174,885 as against 169,836; the number of adult teachers, 5000 (males, 1606; females, 3394); and the number of pupil teachers 626 (males, 123, females, 503). . . ■ , Mr K. Masters (Utratiford),- quoting | certain cases in the Taronaki district? , contended that the capitation allowances to the schooj. committees for contingencies were utterly inadequate. Both he and Mr W. T. Jenningo (ttaitomo) stressed the need for teachers' residences and new schools; particularly in the backbJoeks. ' . '.,.,... The Minister, in reply, said _ that it hod been quite impossible during the war to provide new schools, teachers residences, improved education, and increased finance for the school committees; and the department was confronted with the problem of dealing with the necessarily accumulated arrears at a time of high wages, scarce labour, and high prices for materials. The department, however, working to a plan, hoped to meet the position as adequately as possible within a period of three or four vears. lie warned the House and the conntry that more money would have to be 6pent on education than in the past. Already the expenditure of the department was over 2J millions. Mr D. G. Sullivan (Avon): And still the service is starved.

It was a mistake, added Mr Parr, to contract the expenditure on primary and second education, as secondary education was also free. No less than" 75 per cen». of. the <ahildr«a who passed the sixth standard went on to the high Schools and the technical echools, ' and there received free education. Ho know of no country in which the advantages of secondary education were wore' widely diffused. Great difficulties hacj - been found, particularly im the backblocks, in getting tenders for the erection 01 teachers' residences; .but he hoped to get over that, to some extent at least, by means of the system of movable residences which he was introducing. ,-, The report was laid on the table. LAW PRACTITIONERS BILL. KEAI> A SECOND TIME. On. tho motion of the Hon. E. P. Leo (ilinistor for Justice) the Law Practitioners Amendment Bill was read, a second time pro forma and referred to the Statutes Revision Committee. OTHER MEASURES. COEONEtvI BILL. In movinjr the second reading of tho Coroners Amendment Bill, Mr Leo stated that the measure provided l for-the abolition of tho schedule of fees . for medical witnesses and fixing the amount of such fees by Ordor-in-Cpuncil; It provided, also, that tho fees for tho coroners, now fixed by Order-in-Council, or, if not to fixed, by statute, should

for the future be fixed by Order-in-Coun-cil only. The coroners and witnesses were also to be entitled to a refund ol actual travelling expenses ■ * • Tho bill was read a second time without discussion. _ _ MASSEURS BILL. The reasons for opposing the Legislative Council amendments to the Masseurs Registration Bill were agreed to. HAWSE'S BAY RIVERS BILL. The Hawke's Bay Rivera- Amendment Bill was put through committee, read a third time and passed. civilTTst BILL (NO. 2). INCREASE.'OF HONORARIUM. QUESTION OF SUPERANNUATION. Applause and laughter greeted Mr Massev when he rose to move the second reading of the Civil List Bill (No. 2), increasing hon. members salaries to £450 a year. The Prime Minister read the resolution passed last year in favour of an increase in the honorarium and also of some superannuation scheme for oxmembers of the legislature who had given vears of service to the public. Ho recognised that something should bo done to meet the sad case 3 that members knew of; hut to set up a superannuation to deal with the question vas a very difficult-matter. Mr H. Poland (Ohinemuri): Appoint a sub-committee of members on superannuation, i . Mr Massey 'said that he was quits willing to do so. A Labour member:-Will you make it retrospective? Mr Alassey: That is a matter for Parliament to decide. Quoting comparative figures as to salaries, the Prime Minister said that members of the British House of Commons .received .£4OO a y*ar, together with a travelling allowance. In Canada, ; th"e Prime Minister was paid £3IOO/other Ministers .£I4OO, the Speakej .£BOO, and members of the House £sou. In Australia members of tho Eeder.tl Senate and the House of Representatives got £IOOO each. He did not'express an) opinion on that—(laughter)—but he -was sure that members would be quite reasonable and not expect anything unreasonable. (Laughter.) The Premier of NiMv South Wales was paid £1875, other Ministers =£1370, and members £SOO a year. In Victoria the Prime Minister was paid £l£oo, other Ministers £IOOO, and msuib'efs £3OQ;'. but he was not sure that Ihe figures were up-to-date. The Hon. J. A. Hanan (Invercargill;: They are not. In Queensland the Promier got J!1300, other Ministers £IOOO, and members £SOO. 'South Australian members received £3OO, and in Tasmania —again, he was not sure ot the figures being up-tcrdate—the Premier got -filtfO. other Ministers £750, and members .£230 South Africa paid members £6OO, the Prime Minister -E3500, and tea otru'i Ministers £2500. Hon. members were all convinced,, and he believed that the publib' was'.'convmced—the matter had been electors last December—that the present salary was not adequate The last increase was made in 1901, and the .£450 a year now proposed would v,o no further in New Zealand to-day than the £3OO then fixed. .Mr J, A. Nash (Palmorston North)-. Are you going to fix Ministers' salaries'-' Mr Massev sai.d that he was prepan-u to take suggestions from the House. Mr G. Witty (Riccarton): The Premier's should he £2oot>. (Applause.) £SOO PER ANNUM. * >-mb ' wilfordVluggestion. Mr T. M. Wilford (Hutt) suggested that' a Governor's message should be brought down to make certain amendments. He suggested, that the honorarium should be £SOO. and that -of this the Treasury should retain 10 per cent, for a superannuation fund for members of Parliament who had served the country a certain number of years. He supported the suggestion that tho matter should be referred to a committee repre-senting-'all-parties. .He thought, that the increase of salaries should not stop ivith members. It seemed to him a scandal thai the Prime Minister should receive less than the managers of certain business concerns in the city received. He, suggested that the Prime Minister's salary should be £2OOO a year. He did not think that it was extravagant to suggest that he should get as much as the General Manager for Railways when he retired. .As a natural corollary, Minister's salaries should also be increased. He suggested that the Chairman of Committees should receive £7OO instead of £6OO, as in the Bill, and the Speaker £IOOO a year. •Mr Hanan and Mr L. M. Isitt (Christchurch North) supported tho .proposed increase of honorarium. Mr Isitt urging that it should date from the day of ©lection of the new Parliament. lie strongly supported the plea for a superannuation allowance.

Mr 11. Atmoro (Nelson) pointed out that even J 6500 would bo £25 short of the purchasing-power of .£3OO a year in 1914.. ,£3OO to-dav was onlv worth £165 in 1914. .&t?)0. therpfom would not be an "ir.creased honorarium." , LBADER OF OPPOSITION'S POSITION.

Mr A. McNicol (Pahiatua) thought tho leader of tho Opposition should b« paid something abovo ordinary salary.

Mr-W. D. Powdrell: There aro two Oppositions? .Jlr McNicol: You can only have one.

Mr Field said the term of Parliament should bo extended. Ho suggested four years.

A number of other members expressed tho opinion that tho honorarium should be incrersod. Replying, Mr Massoy agreed to the euggostion to set up a committee to go thoroughly into tho bill. Ho would proposo a joint committee of both Houses. His suggestion was that. the salary should bo i'4so, but he thought also that provision ought to bo made for members who had serx-ed long years in I'arliament. Tfco nera-nd reading waa agreed to and the House rose at 11.54 p.m.