WORK OF THE SESSION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21648, 19 May 1932, Page 9

WORK OF THE SESSION

ADDRESS BY MR F. JONES. ’M.P.

Mr F. Jones, the Labour M.P. for Dunedin South, delivered an address in the Town Hall, South Dunedin, last night on tile work of the session just ended. The hall was crowded to the doors. Mr Ralph Harrison presided, and in introducing the speaker, said that Mr Jones was a credit to his electorate. _ Mr Jones, who was received with loud applause, said he would like to explain, something about the parliamentary work' carried on during the past few months. He said that the Labour Party had done , its best to prevent the amendments to the Arbitration Act introduced by the Government being passed. This legislation was the most reactionary that had ever been brought into the House. Compulsory,’ conciliation with optional arbitration meant the abolition of the court. This was another way of reducing the wages, so far as the Arbitration Court awards were concerned. The Labour Party had brought down a proposal that the conciliation, commissioner should, have the deciding vote at the Conciliation Council whether a dispute should go to the Arbitration Court. This proposal had been rejected by the Government. The Government had agreed, however, that provision should be made for women workers. It had been agreed that the wages of women should be determined by the Arbitration Court, provided .that the union decided to make application to the court. What a boon the Act had been to the workers. What a boon it had been to the employers. They were now, „ going back, however, to the old days, Mr Jones dealt at length with the question of unemployment, and. criticised the policy of Mr Coates to relieve the situation.., He caused much amusement by detailing the methods to be adopted to place men on farms. Under the new system of providing work for the men they were going to get an Irishman’s rise. (Laughter.) Under the new scheme the men were not allowed to go to 'the Hospital Board for relief, and that was why the unemployed in many cities said that they would prefer to go back to the old scheme and get relief from the hospital boards. He considered that the most severely j penalised portion of the community was the women. The women had paid into the Unemployment Fund over £IOO,OOO, and had received in relief £2OOO. This yeor the women were to contribute £750,000, and the Government was to spend £IO,OOO on their relictThat was not a fair thing. The women should be given either work or sustenance. The speaker said he had asked Mr Coates what he intended to do in regard to finding employment for the boj-s and girls, and Mr Coates had no schemes and no proposals. The Government was bankrupt so far as finding work for boys and girls was concerned. He referred to The conference of newspaper editors held ; in Wellington, and said that the Labour Party could not find out what the conference was about. One result had been a full-page advertisement m the newspapers —nothing else but political propaganda—paid for by the shillings of the unemployed. A sum of £I2OO had been paid, as a bonus to the newspaper proprietors. Some time was devoted to the criticism of the Government for . reducing the amount of the old-age pensions. The re-, duction amounted practically to Is ud per week. This was not a fair thing, said the speaker. He considered the restriction on the pension to,miners .widows. was the most scandalous thing that had taken place in the House last session.* Other deductions in pensions w ® re .. ferred to, and also the salary reductions of civil servants. The business people had found that these reductions had affected them very seriously, but the Uo\eminent had said that the reductions must go through. It would have been better to have made a bigger reduction on the salaries of the highly-paid civil. servants and left the charwomen s ages alone He knew that the people had bot heard all that the Labour Party had fought for. because the Government practically nan the press of the countij.—(Ap plause.) The speaker detailed the travelling expenses paid to Ministers and officials, and said that. the, < ■ wanted to economise in this respect, ihe Government had, however, said No, sou cannot touch the travelling allowances and expenses?” He thought that p Superann«oto i orv.mts who received over £oUW per annum should be liable to additional servants. 3 2ft .aid that «■> the superannuation funds of the railway ,at S "SdnSi™' the speaker saying that the Government ha failed to meet the situation in i egara to a weekly tenancy. He said that n Parliament had the right to extend .ite * n Ufa* that as a result of the raism* of V the school age 300 to 40? teachers were going to lose their portions, and .they were only going t oj save ULOOO per an num: that the reduction in the grade schools was not being met by tonespondence and that the country child had iSst as much right to a good education ns the town chill The cutting down; of the maternity grant had been contested by the Labour Party, and the matter had been held over till next session. The speaker spoke of the restrictions being Iced by the Government on civil servants Now the civil servants, he said, would not have the right to put thmr grievances before their employees. He , did not think, however, that any Government had the right to pi-event civil eer vants from expressing their opinions oh the social and economic questions of the dav The speaker said be had urged the Government to do away with the military and naval grants, and he criticised the policy of. the Government r in regard to regarded the secondary industries of the country, he believed' that they might to do all they possibly could to develop them. This would help to give employment to their boys and girls. The speaker concluded by Asking the p P to sign the petition calling on the Govern jYicnt to resign, because it bad not done its duty, and was loudly applauded as be resumed his seat. . The speaker answered a number of questions, and a motion was then put thanking Mr Jones for hi* address, protesting against the legislation passed by the Government, and recommending everyone to sign the petition calling on the Government to resign. The motion was carried by acclamation.