ADVOCATES TO BE BRIEFED

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26442, 22 April 1947, Page 6

ADVOCATES TO BE BRIEFED

The public and the newspapers’ representatives will be admitted to the Wanganella tribunal proceedings' The chairman, Mr S. Ritchie, said this afternoon when the sittings were resumed with a full tribunal that the legal advice he had obtained was that a judicial tribunal such as theirs could not lawfully function unless the proceedings were open. The exceptions were those specified in the Magistrate’s Court Act which empowered a magistrate to clear a court for certain specified reasons or to ban publication of certain statements. This being the position, he must, to make the proceedings in accord with the law, admit the public and the press.

Little was done to-day. The employers’ representatives on the tribunal did not attend in the morning, and after the workers’ representatives had conferred with the chairman in committee for a short time, an adjournment was taken till 2.15 p.m., when the full tribunal assembled.

A request was made by the workers’ side for the order of reference to be enlarged to include the procuring of such information as the cost of the contract for repairing the ship, the money paid out to date, the amount received by the workers and that received by Cable and Go. The chairman said that only the Minister of Labour could widen the order of reference.

Mr T. Hill, secretary of the Waterside Workers’ Union, also asked the chairman to obtain a sitting place for the tribunal which would accommodate 2000. He said 10,000 workers in Wellington were interested in the, proceedings, and, as they were to be open, there should be room to accommodate any who wished to attend. The chairman made no. reply to this proposal. To Mr Hill, Mr C. G. Camp, secretary of the New Zealand Employers’ Federation, said that his side would instruct its advocate in support of its contention that additional remunera-tion-for boilermakers and their assistants while the ship was on the reef should not be part of the proceedings. If, however, the tribunal retained this on the order of reference, they would accept the ruling. Mr Hill took exception to a letter by Cable and Co. on April 4 demanding that work should be resumed and that the Minister of Labour do something about it. He said this letter, which was not sent to the unions, was published in the newspapers and conveyed a charge that the workers concerned were pirates holding up repair work to get the highest rewards. Mr Camp objected to Mr Hill, quoting from the newspapers, and said it was the intention of his side to have an advocate, whom they wanted to be present before the case started. He asked that sufficient time should be granted for an advocate to attend, and suggested that Mr Hill.should not continue with his remarks meantime. The chairman said that each side was entitled to an advocate. He did

not think matters should be set forth without any sort of pro-

gramme. Someone should be briefed with the facts who could

consider them in a judicial light and present the most telling impression for his particular side. If he permitted discussions now, the same ground would only have to be traversed again when the advocates attended. He added that newspaper quotations were not evidence.

Mr C. G. Caswell, Wellington Engineers’ Union, said his side would like the order of reference extended. Mr P. E. Warner, Wellington Boilermakers’ Union, said the only way to extend the order would be to disband the tribunal and ask for another with a fresh order. On Mr Camp’s motion, the sitting was adjourned to April 28.