SUMMER TIME BILL.

Otago Witness, Issue 3833, 30 August 1927, Page 26

SUMMER TIME BILL.

A TACTICAL SURPRISE. THE BILL IN COMMITTEE. WELLINGTON, August 24. There was a clever tactical move in the House this evening in connection with the Summer Time Bill. When Mr Speaker resumed the chair at 7.30 p.m. he called on thejlnst order of the day. There were two Bills on the* order paper in front of Mr Sidey’s Summer Time Bill. These were Mr 11. E. Holland’s Legislature Amendment Bill and Mr Savage’s Fair Bents Bill. The former was to be committed, and the latter was down for its second reading. During the .afternoon there were whispers that one of the Labour Party’s Bills would be postponed to enable the House to deal with the Summer Time Bill. When Mr Speaker had taken the chair and called on the first order of the day the Leader of the Opposition (Mr H. E. Holland) was not present, and Mr Peter Fraser, one of his lieutenants, moved that the committal stage of the Legislature Amendment Bill be postponed. This brought Mr W. S. Gleen (Rangitikei) at once to his feet with a point of order. Mr Glenn, however, floundered hopelessly, and was several times pulled up by Mr Speaker, who eventually told him that his point was no point of order. Mr Glenn subsided amidst laughter.

Mr W. D. Lysnar (Gisborne) then had a shot at the point of order, and met with a. similar fate. Mr Speaker put the question that consideration of Mr Holland’s Bill be postponed for a week. This was agreed to on the voices, the chorus of ayes being greatly in excess of the noes. That was one Bill out of the way, but there was a further surprise in store for the majority of members, when Mr M. J Savage (Auckland West) rose in his place and moved that his own “Fair Rents Bill” be postponed until that day week. There was in this case a call for a division, which was duly taken, the anti-Summer Timers being defeated by 43 votes to 21 The voting was as follows : — Ayes (43). Anderson M'Lennan Armstrong Mason, H. G. R. Bartram Mason, J. Bell Ngata Bellringer Nosworthy | Buddo Parry Coates Potter Dickie Ransom Dickson, J. S. Rolleston, F. J. Forsyth Savage Fraser Seddon Harris Sidey Hawken Stewart Horn Sullivan Howard Sykes Hudson Veitch Jordan Waite Lee, E. P. Walter Lee, J. A. Williams Luke Wright M’Combs Young M’Keen Noes (21). Bitchener Kyle Dickson, J. Linklater Elliott Lysnar Field MacMillan Forbes Nash Glenn Pomare Hamilton, A. Reid Hamilton, J. R. Rhodes Hunter Rolleston, J. C. Jones, D. Samuel J ones, W.

The House then went into committee on the two Bills, the Summer Time and the Workers’ Compensation Amendment. Mr F. F. Hockly (chairman of committees) having taken his scat, Mr Sidey advanced to the table with his Bill, and was greeted with a round of hearty applause from all parts of the House. Mr Sidey acknowledged the unusual compliment with a solemn bow, which amused the House so much that it laughed heartily. Then the stone-wallers got to work. Mr W. S. Glenn (Rangitikei), Mr A. M. Samuel (Ohinemuri), and Mr W. D. Lysnar (Gisborne) leading off. How long members will fight the Bill in committee remains to be seen, but if those who are supporting it stick to their guns it will get safely through committee, probably in the early hours of the morning, with some amendment, which its sponsor has agreed to make.

The following are the amendments which it is proposed to move with Mr Sidey’s consent in the Summer Time Bill Mr IT. Holland will move an amendment as a sub-clause to clauses as follows :—Reference to any specified point of time in any award or industrial agreement relating to workers employed in the threshing of grain or the ’’earing of sheep shall be deemed to be reference to New Zealand standard time, provided that any employer and the workers employed by him may at any time elect by mutual agreement that such reference shall for any period or for any particular purpose during summer time be deemed to be reference to summer time. Any such decision may be at any time in like manner revoked.

Mr Girling has an amendment limiting the duration of summer time. This will make the time from the morning of the first Sunday in November to the third Sunday in February instead of the first Sunday in March. An amendment in Mr H. E. Holland's name is a new sub-clause to clause 3 as follow: —The ?ourt of Arbitration may, at any time after the passing of the Act, on application made by any party to an award in force under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, 1925, affecting workers in coal mines, make an order by way of addition to that award prescribing that all references in the award to any specified point of time shall, during the period of summer tin" continue to be references to New Zealand standard time.

A DRAMATIC ADJOURNMENT.

NEWS OF MR BOLLARD’S DEATH

WELLINGTON, August 25.

In spite of the fact that they were in a 2 to 1 minority, a group of representatives of rural constituencies in the House of Representatives stonewalled the Summer Time Bill throughout the whole of Wednesday night, and they had every appearance of being able and willing to continue the blockade during tp-day. The debate was interrupted, however, by the receipt of the news of the death of Mr R. F. Bollard (Minister of Internal Affairs), and out of respect for the memory of the deceased legislator the House agreed to report progress. The discussion will be continued in committee on one day next week, but in the meantime the oppositionists to the. Bill will have an opportunity to consider the advice of the Prime Minister (Mr Coates) that now they have voiced their protest they should attempt to reach some compromise. Up to shortly after midnight the discussion on the Bill followed the well-worn track of pro and con, but after that hour the stonewallers had to draw on their imagination to find material to keep the debate going. At 2 a.m. Mr J. R. Hamil-

ton (Awarua) moved that progress be reported, but the motion was defeated by 38 votes to 19. The division list being:—

Ayes (19). Bitchener Jones, W. Campbell Linklater Coates Lysnar Elliott Pomare Field Reid Glenn Rhodes Hamilton, A. Rolleston, J. C. Hamilton, J. R. Samuel Hawken Williams Hunter Noes (38). Armstrong Mason, H. G." R. Bartram Mason, J. Bell Nash Bellringer Ngata Dickie Nosworthy Dickson, J. S. Parry Forsyth Potter Fraser Ransom Girling Rolleston, F. J. Harris Savage Holland, H. Seddon Horn Sidey Howard Sullivan Jordan Sykes Kyle Veitch Lee, E. P. Waite Luke Walter M’Combs Wright M’Keen Young Pairs. For the Bill. Stewart Ward Holland, H. E. Atmore Tapley Wilford Smith Against the Bill. M’Lennan Hudson Jones, W. Anderson Bollard Forbes Burnett

With the division recorded, the Opposition went back to the discussion on the chart title, until at 3.5 a.m. Sir Apirana Ngata (Eastern Maori) gave them fresh ammunition and fresh opportunity for speaking. He declared that the title of the Bill offended him, and he moved that the word ‘Time” be struck out with a view to inserting another word. He did not name the substitute word. Subsequent speakers found some difficulty in adhering to the subject of the amendment, and were frequently brought back on to the track by the chairman (Mr F. F. Hockly). The various meanings of the word “time” were exploited at length, and at 4 o'clock it was suggested that it was getting near breakfast time. Mr T. Forsyth (Wellington East) : It is ragtime, I think. A Reform Member (huddled up on a bench, apparently asleep, and covered with a rug) : It is be'dtime. Another Voice: Wild time. The chief contributors to the discussion were Messrs Glenn, Lysnar, Samuel, and Rhodes, who suggested all sorts of, possible substitutes for the word ‘‘time. ’ At last the chairman found it necessary to draw attention to the fact that some speakers were “trifling.” Ho announced that he would only permit the suggestion of any reasonably suitable word. Dictionaries were quoted, and one speaker attempted to discuss the origin and deeper significance of the word. The ruling' was given at 5.15 a.m., after Mr Lysnar had vigorously suggested the titles “The Summer Hardship Bill” and “The Summer Salt (somersault) Bill,’’ and after Mr Rhodes had favoured Latin, French, and Maori words for “time,” that any further substitutions would be out of order. A few minutes later the Chairman forbade any further reference to the motives underlying the moving of the amendment. The amendment was defeated on a division taken at 6.25 a.m. by 36 votes to 18. I Shortly before 7 a.m. Mr Sidey made an appeal to the minority opposition to recognise the position. He complimented them upon the splendid fight, they had made, and suggested that they should be satisfied with the disastrous divisions that had been taken.

Mr Lysnar: We want to finish the fight. “It is impossible to expect the majority to give way,” said Mr Sidey. “I th:nk it would be quite unreasonable.” Mr Glenn: Exempt the farmers and the fight will be stopped in a minute. Mr Sidey suggested that a slight adjustment of the railway time-table in certain parts of the Dominion could be made. “ I think we have to look at this matter fairly and squarely,’’ remarked the Prime Minister. “I don’t wish to interfere. This is an important question, and I recognise that members who are opposing the Bill are not doing so in any facetious spirit.” Mr Lysnar: We can keep it going for a week. <

“That may be,” said Mr Coates, “but we have always got to maintain the balance and recognise that there is a huge majority against us, and the question is to what length this should be carried.’’ Mr Glenn: There is a big backing behind us.

Mr Coates pointed out that there was a two to one majority against them, and they must be very careful that they did not abuse the forms of the House to defeat an obvious majority. Mr Rhodes: We only want a easjnablc compromise. Mr V. Potter (Roskill) : No, we don’t want a compromise. “The public will only put up with a certain amount,” the Prime Minister said, “and they certainly would not think much of us if we used the forms of the House to extremes'.’’ Mr Coates added that he was concerned as to whether the time of Parliament should be taken up to an unlimited extent on the question, as it would interfere with other important business.

Mr Lysnar: The farmers axe more im portant than the business of this House Don’t make any mistake about it.

Mr Glenn: Is it the Prime Minister’s instruction that opposition to the Bill cease. I want to interpret that. Mr V. H. Potter (to the Prime Minister): Never mind. Carry on. The Prime Minister said he would leave with members the thought that the matter should be carefully considered during the breakfast adjournment with a view to ascertaining whether some compromise could be reached. During the breakfast adjournment the news of Mr Bollard’s death was received.

(The dramatic adjournment is reported elsewhere.)