PARLIAMENT DAY BY DAY.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 12587, 18 October 1911, Page 3

PARLIAMENT DAY BY DAY.

(From our Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, this day LOAN BILL.

The Loan Bill, or as it is headed, Aid to Public Works and Land Settlement Bill,, to authorise the Minister of Knance to raise £1,500,000 for public 'works, purposes, was circulated last night, having been introduced by Governor's Message m the afternoon. The schedule of the Bill accounts for the million and a -half loan as follows : Construction of railways, £500,000; additional rolling stock for open lines and for incidental expenses. £30,000;^ for land settlement and goldfielda development, £500,000, and £200,000 for other Vublic works. v WIDOWS' PENSIONS. The Widows' Pensions Bill was one of the measures which went through the Committee stage last night. A new clause was added to the effect that the terms of the Bill shall not apply to* aliens, Chinese ; -or other Asiatics, naturalised or not, the idea being to prevent Asiatics from becoming naturalised, with the intention of benefiting under the Act. The Prime Minister pointed out that about 70 Maoris benefited under the Act, at a coat of £16,000, while the whole scheme would mean an additional cost of £55,000 on the pensions fund. The ; Bill was reported with the amendment. _ VARIOUS BILLS. The Labor Bills Committee, have reported on\ the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act Amendment Bill, and have recommended it. with trifling alterations. Notice of his intention to introduce an amendment of the Municipal Corporations Act was given to-day by the Hon. D. Buddo. FREEDOM FOR ELECTORS. The Legislative Act \ Amendment Bill, introduced by the Prime Minister, is <jeaigned to carry out the intentioji already m the House, that every obstaclo to electors being legitimately placed on the roll should bo removed, m spite of the difficulties that occurred owing to tho fact that certain: people did not fill irt the electoral census form. It also pro- ) .vides that every elector who on the close of r the poll is present m a polling place! tor the purpose of voting shall bo entitled to receive a ballot-paper, and to mark and deposit the same m the same manner as if he had voted before the close. of the poll. ' EXTENDED PENSION SCHEME.

.The- Qld /Age Pensions Amendment Bill, which gives effect to the extension of. the scheme as outlined m tho Budget, was put through Committee. . The. chief alteration was a new clause added at the instance of the Prime Minister. Where any pensioner or applicant for a pension, who is. tho owner of a sum of money not .otherwise chargeable as income, ■expends out of that sum m any year m maintaining himself or. his wife such of that sum as with the actual income of ' either or both of them, and any pension already granted to one or the other exceeds £60, if he is unmarried, or £90 if he is married, and maintaining his .wife, any sum so expended in 'excess shall be deemed to be income for the purpose of this Act, provided that the magistrate may m his discretion exempt from the provisions of this section any sum which jxe deems to have been otherwise legitimately expended. . COMPENSATION FOR ACCIDENTS. The- Labor Bills Committee have reported the Workers' Compensation Amendment Bill with several Committee, amendments m the shape of additional clauses. One provides for compensation proportionate ,to the injury to defendants when a worker leaves par-

tial dependents, and another teti forth that the wife of a deceased worker and his children under 10 years of age (whether legitimate or illegitimate) shall be conclusively presumed to Tbave been dependent on his earnings at the time of the accident which caused his death, but unless the dependency can be proved to be total it shall be deemed as having been only partial. An important point introduced is a sub-clauso to clause 5 of the principal Act, m which it is provided that when a worker is totally incapacitated he shall be entitled to draw half his average earnings, the maximum to be drawn oeing £2 10s per week. Clauses have also been inserted limiting . the actions for recovery of compensation to proceedings m one part of the Empire m the event of an accident^ .happening outside of New Zealand, compensation for which is sought m New Zealand, and vice versa.