HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

New Zealand Times, Volume XLVI, Issue 10716, 9 October 1920, Page 8

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

LAST OF COMPULSORY LOANS £6.000,000 FOR SOLDIER SETTLEMENT. ANOTHER MILLION AVAILABLE. The House of Representatives met at 2.30 p.m. yesterday. CHRISTCHURCH TRAMWAYS BILL. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL AMENDMENTS AGREED TO. Mr L. M. Isitt (Christchurch North) moved that the Legislative Council amendments to tho Christchurch Tramways District Bill be agreed to. Mr J. -McCombs (Lyttelton) moved that the p amendment striking out the clause empowering the Tramways Board to adopt the system of proportional representation be disagreed witb. The clause, he pointed out, was merely permissive in character. If the Legislative Council amendment was agreed to, he pointed out, the Christchurch Tramways Board would be the only local body that could not adopt proportional representation. Mr E. J. Howard (Christchurch South), Mr D. G. Sullivan (Avon), Dr Thacker (Christchurch East)7 attd Mr G. Witty (Riccarton) supported Mr McCombs’s amendment. After some further discussion in the course of which Messrs W. D. Lysnar (Gisborne), leitt, and-F. F. Hockly (Rotorua) opposed, and Messrs J. Edie (Bruce) and C. E. Statham (Dunedin Central) supported it, the amendment, on a division, was defeated by 30 votes to 26. The Legislative Council amendments were then agreed to on the voices.

DISCHARGED SOLDIERS’ SETTLEMENT. SECOND READING OF LOANS BILL. In moving the second reading of the Discharged Soldiers’ Settlement Loans Billj the Prime Minister said that’he thought that it could come under the heading of “contentious,” though it was one of the most important bills dealt with this session. The policy ot soldier-settlement had been very satisfactory and successful up to tho present, and the money would not be used for any other purpose than soldier land settlement- until all the soldiers who desired to go on the land and were qualified by experience and otherwise to do so, were supplied with tho land they required. Colonel Mitchell (Wellington South): Does that apply to houses as well? Mr Massey replied that the Government was encouraging building rather than buying houses; but money would be available for the latter purpose. The amount of the loan was sis millions, a good round sum, and he saw his way to supply the fund with fmother million, if necessary, without asking the authority of Parliament. At the end of last financial year there w.as a surplus of approximately, 26 millions. It became, necessary for him to use some of that money for other purposes, but ho ,thought it would bo possible to repay it from the revenue of the present year, and thou the money Would be available for soldier land set-* ■tiemeht. The rate of interest on the’ loan was to ho 5i per cent., and he proposed to recommend to Cabinet that the term of the loan should be not less than, ten and not more than: fifteen years. When money was dear, of course, it was better to have the term of a loan short. Two and a half millions of the debentures would be set apart for. the payment of death duties, such provision in the past having proved, very popular. Tho com-, pulsorv* load provisions wore retained,* with the exception that the amount of the compulsory loans was to bo one year’s, instead of, as previously, three years’, land and income tax, as paid by each individual concerned. He would not .have included tho compulsory provisions, but for tho fact that tho loan was to provide for expenditure arising out of tho compulsory loans. Nothing but war could justify them, and we 1 were not now at war, and ho hoped wo never would he again. He thought, however, that the security was so good that there would ho no need to apply tho compulsory provisions.