PARLIAMENT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19258, 23 August 1924, Page 2

PARLIAMENT.

YESTERDAY’S PROCEEDINGS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (Pun United Press Association.) . WELLINGTON, August 23. Tho Legislative Council met at 2.30 p.m. to-day. I/AND TRANSFER BILL. The Land Transfer and Compulsory Registration of Titles Bill was read a third time arid passed. The Council adjourned nt 3.12 p.m. until 2.30 p.m. on Thursday next. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. ADVANCES DEPARTMENT. Tho House mot at 2.30 p.m Replying to Mr Wilford, Mr MASSEY said ho was aware that many unwise things had been done by people who desired to borrow money from the Advances Dopartinent, but ho could not prevent that. Ho did not say those people wore speculators, but tho Government was not going to stand for speculation and boom in any form. Ho also wished to make it clear that there wore already applications in hand sufficient for the next three or four months. Tho department was doing its best, and he considered :t had done wonders. Ho might be able to make a statement within the next few days, but in any case they had sufficient money in sight to carrv them on at the present rate of lending for the next 12 months. POLICE OFFENCES BILL. „ 9 n . motion of tho Hon. C. J. PARR (Minister of Justice), the Police Offences Amendment Bill was read a second time pro forma and rendered to the Statutes Revision Committee. THE ESTIMATES. TTio House then went into Committee of Supply further to consider the Estimates. THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT, The first dealt with was the Treasury Department—£32.Bl6. Mr FORBES deprecated the present system of presenting tho Budget to the House and the country. Ho suggested that the Minister of Finance should prepare his Budget and lay it on the table, but instead of reading masses of figures to the House he should make a financial speech in which he could explain the main features of tho Budget. It would ho much more interesting to tho public, and would prevent members getting down a lot of blind alleys in their criticism. This year’s document was so obscure in many respects that ho had heard it described as a “thimble rigging” Budget Mr MASSEY indicated that he was favourable to the simplification of tho method of presenting the Budget, Mr SMITH (Taranaki) urged the Prime Minister to devise some method by which progress payments could be made more expeditiously to- those getting loans' from the Advances Department for building houses. At present tho delays were so great that builders could not obtain the advances certified to by the Government officers, and consequently their prices were increased to the detriment of those building homes. Mr WILFORD complained of the cost of cablegrams between the High Commissioner’s office and the Government, and also the travelling expenses of departmental officers. The vote was then passed. LAND AND INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT. Land and Income Tax Department—£so,6o7—was then taken. Mr WILFORD complained at the comparatively small salary paid to tho Commissioner of Taxes—£ll3B. New Zealand was extremely lucky in having such a Commissioner as Mr Clarke, who was worth far more money. He moved to reduce tho vote by £1 as an indication that tho Commissioner’s salary should be increased. The Hon. W. NOSWORTHY said the Government was in accord with what bad been said regarding the Commissioner _ of Taxes, and he would represent to tho Prime Minister what had been said, and he had no doubt Cabinet would give it favourable consideration. Mr WILFORD said ho was too old a hand to be put off with soft words such as those. He demanded a division. On tho bell being rung tho PRIME MINISTER entered the Chamber and informed Mr Wilford that ho would accept the amendment. Ho passed the highest encomium on the Commissioner, who, he said, was one of tho most valuable officeis in the public service. Mr HOLLAND said possibly all that had been said about the Commissioner of Taxes was correct, but he was surprised at Mr Wilford attempting to raise the salary of a man who was getting over £IOOO per year, while not a word wias said about the men who were not getting enough to live on. That was Liberal consistency. Ho moved to, reduce the total vote by £1 as an indication that those officers receiving £450 or less should have their salaries restored to the pre-war standard. Mr FORBES denied that the Liberals wore inconsistent. They were not seeking to raise the higher salaries all round. Their motion related only to one officer, who had special claims. The Labour members generally supported Mr Holland’s amendment, claiming that the Labour Party’s policy was to raise tho lower salaries before the higher-paid officers had their emoluments increased. Mr MASSEY said the salaries schedule was at present under review, and if he were not mistaken it was going to result in the public service salaries being increased to the extent of £IOO,OOO per annum. They could not go too fast because so much depended on tho prices obtained for our produce. If those fell, things would become very difficult. They must not mortgage the future too much. They had gone as far as they could for the present Mr WILFORD said his party would vote to increase tho salaries of £320 and less, but not as high as £450. On a division the amendment was defeated by 40 votes to 16. The House then adjourned for dinner. The House resumed in committee at 7.30 p.m. Mr SIDEY said he considered the Taxation Department should be enabled to make arrangements that would avoid the possibility of evasions. Mr F. J. ROLLESTON urged the appointment of resident officers in various districts. Ho drew attention to the fact that occasionally mortgagees found themselves liable for land tax unpaid by mortgagors. Mr WILFORD suggested that the Commissioner of Taxes should be empowered to lodge a caveat against the properties in such cases. Mr MASSEY said the department was already appointing officers in tho cities and at Invercargill regarding unpaid land tax. Such amounts were now a lien on the land affected. The arrears of land tax at the end of tho financial year amounted to £367,050, and of income tax to £440.214. The vote was passed unaltered. STAMP DUTIES DEPARTMENT. On the vote for the Stamp Duties Department—£73.B37—Mr WILFORD moved an amendment that the total be reduced by. ffi as an indication that the "cut” in the civil servants’ salaries of £320 and under should be reinstated. The Hon. C. J. PARR said that such restoration would involve a total amount of £4,191,515, and if the reim.tatement were made the whole scheme of reduction of taxation would have to go by tho board. Mr HOLLAND said that Labour’s efforts were in the direction of benefiting the lower-paid men, while the Government’s scheme of reducing taxation only benefited wealthy interests. Mr MASSET said the civil servants were better off to-day than at the outbreak of Wlir . The scale of salaries this year would cost hundreds of thousands extra, probably nearly £500,000. He wanted to see all receive proper payment, but there were other people besides civil servants to be paid. Were the public servants to be remunerated on a different scale from the workers in the mines, in tho country, or on the wharves, for instance? Mr FRASER said the point was that the civil servants should have nt least the standard of living they enjoyed in 1011. Mr POLAND said the Government paid salaries last year as now scheduled, and yet was able to show a surplus of £1,800,000, Parliament should see that the men were paid such salaries as would enable them to enjoy the same standard of living as thev enjoyed in 1014. The Hon. A. D. 3VPLEOD said that nil would agree that the public servants should be put back to tho pre-war standard of living. There were 80,000 farmers in New Zealand who also should be put back to the 1014 standard of living. Some people seemed to be forgetting there had

been a war, but tvishcd to see one section of the people benefited at the expense of another setion. Mr ATMOKE said the removal of tho supertax had benefited the worker by releasing money for expenditure that was more useful to the general body of people than Governmental expenditure. Heavy taxation could only react upon industry to the detriment of those employed therein. He favoured a reduction in taxation, but there should be progressive betterment of tho public servants’ salaries. On a division Mr WILFOKD’S amendment was defeated by 29 votes to 24, and the vote was carried unaltered. National Provident and Friendly Societies’ Departhrnent v0te.—£22,300 was then put through without discussion. Progress was reported, and the House rose at 9.15 till 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday.