PARLIAMENT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18612, 21 July 1922, Page 6

PARLIAMENT.

YESTERDAY’S PROCEEDINGS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES (Abridged from Press Association telegrams.) WELLINGTON, July 20. The House mot to-day at 2.30 p.m. ■LICENSING OF ARMOURS. Mr G. WITTY gave notice of a question asking whether the Government would lay on the table of the House all the correspondence which had passed between the Imperial Government ami the New Zealand Governments concerning the licensing of Armours. ADDRESS-IN-REPLT DEBATE. The debate on the Address-in-Reply was resumed by Mr D. G. SULLIVAN (Avon), who repudiated the suggestion that the Labour Party was disloyal, but claimed the right to discuss questions of Imperial and constitutional policy without being labelled “disloyal.” He quoted Hansard to show that in 1911 Mr Massey eulogised Germany as a country from which we could learn something. That was all very well in its way, but as soon as Labour members did a similar thing they were at once branded ' disloyal.” The debate so far had produced nothing which tended to show that the Government desired to uplift the working classes, .and the workers must come to the conclusion that the Government was no good for the wage-earner. Their ■wages and the standard of comfort had been reduced without a single compensating advantage. To remedy this state of affairs they must have proportional representation, which would give Labour not nine, but twenty representatives in the House. Mr ,R. A. WRIGHT (Wellington) contended 'that Labour in its professions of loyalty had never given n very satisfactory explanation of its position regarding the war.. He condemned proportional representation, basing his conclusions upon experiences in connection with the Christchurch City Council elections. He urged the Government to amend the Local Bodies Finance Act so as to enable local bodies to include in loan.i the cost of the flotation of the loans to pay off antecedent liabilities. It would cost the Wellington City Council £17,000 to raise its loan for that purpose. He also appealed to the Government to ease the burdens of the business people by demanding from them less in the way of statistics. For instance, printers were asked to make a return of the quantity of ink and paper used. This was often a troublesome and an expensive requirement. If it were done merely to keep up some .department then it was a fitting opportunity for economy. In view of what the Government had accomplished under most adverse conditions it could make its appeal to the country with every confidence. Mr R. W. SMITH (Waixnarino) said the Government were being declaimed, and, rightly so, for the amount of land settlement effected. _ It was also calling out for more production, but it was not doing anything to help settlers whom it had put on the_ land. _ It was simply sitting down and letting things go to rack, and ruin. If the Government could guarantee to help local bodies they oould raise loans to help the settlers. Commercial firms were selling the settlers up, because those settlers could not tide over the present financial pinch. These firms were doing tliio for two reasons: First, to get the money off the bank, and in the second place to earn a commission out of the sales. This was most unfair, and must depreciate the production of the country. He suggested that a tribunal should be set up to consider the cose of every farmer before the merchant was allowed to sell him up. He also pointed out that the production of the country wae going to suffer because farmers were compelled to freeze their flock sheep, because they were being pressed for money, and there was no other way of raising it The effect of this would be fatal to the flocks of the dominion later on He urged a review of the Moratorium Act in the interests of country settlors. The House adjourned at 5.30 p.m. EVENING SITTING. The House resumed at 7.30 p.m. Dr A. K. NEWMAN (Wellington) resumed the debate, and regretted the existence of two Oppositions to the Government in the House, but predicted that there would be no Opposition at all after the next election. Like the Kilkenny cats, they would eliminate themselves, which was characteristic of Labour, The Opposition had a paucity of ideas. It had but one idea,- and that was to tax, and tax, and tax again. There was notliing to bo gained by further taxation. Ho regretted that he oould not see any way by which what they were now paying could be reduced. The Prime Minister had at one time said we were to get a certain amount of reparation money from Germany on the first of this month. It was now the 20th, and we had not a dog’s chance of getting a penny piece. He favoured the settuig up of a commission to ascertain what losses were incurred on soldier settlements. Let us write the losses off, and give the soldiers a fresh start. It was no use letting the soldiers go on carrying burdens they could never get rid of. What was happening now was inevitable after every great war, and if our people only read more histoyy they would have known that it was coming. As a remedy for unemployment he suggested the better distribution of work. Much that was done* in summer might be held over until winter, when it was most wanted. Ho urged the cultivation of our fisheries, and advocated the setting up of a board of research to find out things that would help the industries of the dominion. Mr H. POLAND (Ohmemuri) twitted tie Government with being a one-man Government. which was not a good thing for any country, even if it was a grand old man. who was running the country. Ho asked the supporters of the Ministry to now and again walk into the lobby against the Government, just to,show that they were really possessed of the radical principles they professed. Mr W. D. LYSNAR (Gisborne) said he looked to the Government to administer, the Public Expenditure Adjustment Act fairly and justly towards the public servants. If it attempted to inflict an injustice, and impose a hardship, then he would llav© something to say. It was the duty of the House to find a remedy for the evils of the liquor trade, and not drive the people to prohibition. Dr THACKER recounted the history of the National Cabinet for the purpose of showing that there was nothing in common between the Liberal Party and the Reform Party. The adjournment ,of tbo debate was moved by Mr W. H. FIELD, and the House rose at 11 p.m.