THE COMING SESSION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20965, 3 March 1930, Page 2

THE COMING SESSION.

POSITION OF THE GOVERNMENT. REFERENCE BY SIR THOMAS SIDEY. (Special to Daily Tniss.) WELLINGTON, March 1. Brief reference to the position of the Government and the work of the coming session was made by the Attorneygeneral and Minister of. Justice (Sir Thomas Sidey) at the Accountants’ Society’s dinner. The next session, he said, was supposed to be the working session of Parliament, but if they believed all they heard the Government was not going .to get an opportunity. However, its legislative programme was more for- " ward than, was usual at this date. There was no parallel to. the conditions at present existing in the New Zealand Par- . liament. They all knew that the Government. was holding office on sufferance. Times v£?re difficult with unemployment and the fall in the prices of produce causing diminished spending power of the people. All this made the times anxious. “And notwithstanding this,” he added, “ Our difficulties have not been made any ■ - lighter by members ofonr own organisation. Up to date this Parliament has some noteworthy things to its credit.” ’ / Acknowledging references, which had, been'made by previous speakers to. the Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward), Sir Thomas expressed his appreciation,' particularly because some recent references to Sir Joseph Ward had not been so" generous. Sir Joseph Ward had spent a lifetime in the ser.lce of the people, . and this long effort must have been a contributing cause to his illness. When Sir Joseph Ward was. asked to place his long experience at the disposal of the United Party he might well have de- Inclined, saying that he had richly deserved a rest. Therefore the speaker could hardly conceive anyone with generous in-' stincts, no matter what his politics, fail- '

ing to extend to the Prime Minister the utmost consideration, in his present condition.

A passing reference to . the political situation was also made by the Minister of Railways (Mr W. B. Taverner) in the course of his speech. “We are a minority Government,” he said, 44 but the only way is to nail onr ■ colours to the mast and go ahead, no matter what the result.”