AUSTRALIAN POLITICS

Otago Witness, Issue 3034, 8 May 1912, Page 32

AUSTRALIAN POLITICS

QUEENSLAND ELECTIONS. BRISBANE, May 2. Labour has lost the South Brisbane seat, the counting of the absent votes having placed the Ministerialist 31 ahead. There are" a -few still to come, but they cannot alter the result. There are still four seats in doubt. The Ministerialists are hopeful of winning at least two of these. The latest returns make the state of parties as follows :• Ministerialists 48 Labour . ... ... 24 •'- - , • . May 4. Mr Kirwan, the Labour candidate, won the Brisbane seat by a majority of 36. The counting of the other doubtful results is still incomplete. The defeated Labour candidate for the Logan electorate admitted that the strike had done the Labour cause a lot of harm.

TASMANIAN ELECTIONS. HOB ART, May 2. The Hare system of voting in use at the elections is the cause of the sJow returns, and so far the returns for only one electorate are complete. The Premier, the Speaker, and the Leader of the Opposition are definitely elected. May 3. Most of the returns are still incomplete, the shortage of baJlbt-papers in some of the electorates adding to the delay. An analysis of the present figures indicates that the Liberals will win 17 and Labour 13 seats. May 5. The counting in two more electorates has been completed. Each returned three Liberals and three Labour members. They previously returned four Liberals and two Labour members. NEW SOUTH WALES MINISTRY. SYDNEY, May 3. Mr Cann,'the member for Broken HOI, lias been appointed State Treasurer. The three representatives of the Barrier are now Ministers, Mr Griffiths being Minister of Public Works in New South Wales and Mr Thomas Federal Minister of Home Affairs. May 6. The Minister of Public Works (Mr Griffiths), outlining the Government's public works policy, said that for several years to come there would be an annual Expenditure of £5,000,000, chiefly on railways in the country and water and sewerage works. _