LICENSING AMENDMENT.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 15317, 13 September 1920, Page 8

LICENSING AMENDMENT.

— --— *^ TRAK^fER OF LICENSES. . The Licensing Amendment Bill is ln-i-eTKH-d to prevent evasion oi tho lavs", which prohibits ii4e. f rc'iaovaL of a license beyond fuo • limns 'p'l'escVfbcfi hy section r.^7 of the Lic<*n*lns Art, 190 S. . Mr. .'l^einijudrtledi; to : tiie Houso not to usoJiflie •J5i11.-foTr,^io..sp.un)cfee> of • opening: up :fho -.whoie ' licensing question. ■ Mr, W..D. Lysnar (GisJiorno) told the Minister that he could not .expect tlio Bill •to go. through without th« whole question boiiig opened. The hon. nicinbrv repeated his Jormcr assertions -that., prohibition was not tlio solution of me drink problem. He proposed to move' in the, committee stage amendments (as ai- ' reatly telegraphed. ' < In the subsetiuent debate Mr. McComhs (Lyttolton) re-stated the rape for piohibiiion. Mr. McCallmn (Wairau) oaliod the Bill a "poor little atom not worth discussing." Ho desired to see sweeping reforms of the liquor Traffic. 1 and was not surprised that the" prohibitionists should complain of the present state of affairs. He threatened to move his own Licensing. vßill,' clause by clause. o The Prim© Minister- said that to attempt -o discuss or deat with the licensing question oii. that itfght would be simply a waste of 'time. : S6 far as he was able 'Ho judge; there would be no seriou's^-or important 1 amendments inserted In tho«Licens'ing Act'prior tothe next licensirtg poll, which, would probably take place' at' the same tfmo^'as s the next geri« crat election. Th^t- was iis -opinion at the moment. He did not?-fsa3p ; that there woui*;b«( absolutely no amendment bu,t if anytnirig was'aone henhoupht it would be simply anomalies. If "the liquor trade -;su'FviwdVthe next licensing ■poll; 'It;'.%ould>t.-Be" ther duty or Parlia^ ment to rd^ar^reith^itx! asiit -hail not ; been dealt .with; forrrtheclast ctwentt yc,ii%—and that not innthOifln^aSsti-eitner: of the liquorutx^de-jor :OJfi 4 the Party, but- m t Q or.anter3BstttS)f-Jthc- -country as & whole. ; Undopbtedjy- the f. whole system called for refpr.m^iThe', Act. 0f M83.1 was •the one, on. > w.hio^^^& .-wore- -workine to--day. Very imDprtant. amendments had been introduced %. J894 O r. 1895,-, but sbieo tha^t time little or. nothing had been dnne. ThouKh. he.vag)r,eedL. I wi^i,. those who had jsaid that there .was "Biy^t. need of reform, he tUd not fibink' iftiich..'\ypuld be done until the clec'tors h'a^f' had another -opportunity, . -of. . ,c-\pTOssjng ..thoir wishes, ■. An hon. tje'v # 'ain^nd it first, Mr.- Massey a .repJ[ted' m^V4t- Was.. Impossible to say - what a'mehdnttnts %re required or wore possible unM tha electors, hac] again ;dealt- with- thj^'iies'tiOn.. 7 Touching tho' 'Bill.' Beidm^ne'"' house, he ■wished to sa'yith'at .# had been brought' down at ' the rMuelF of a number .of people torptne^y/lfo defects m the .licensing ■■■UgibUvmi "There were mahy people whcf^Welrer.ifet 1 'Bromhitiohlsts- who were anxious-'to >^§ec the" Bill passed into Jaw, and,v?he spirit' 9?- the Act carried ont m ■ Its "entirety: l When ' the present •Licensing Act was; -flashed, into law it was never contemplated • f hat V.iicenses| should be removed': from «.one part-vof -an -.electoTi' ate. to a»6thfcrv.;Pa,i:t <\\stances proyi^ed by, -the.;; Act. In several .instances the wrdng thing' had been donebecause the spirit pf ijue Act had not been complied with. There, were only two clauses of any importance" m the measure, and, t he >, Government did not intend to have it amended m any way. j Mr. Lysn.af: We will try to amend it, anyway. Mr. Massey said -the hon. member was quite witlyn his rights m moving amend-' ments if ho desired.. He {the Premier) w«ns anxious, however, that the:' House should promptly . come to a division. When the Bill reached the committee stage, members might move their amendments, but if any amendment was earned, and anything' put into the Bill that was not m it at the present time, the Bill would", not be proceeded with. Mr isitt aTgucd against 1 .any .increase Jn the number of licenses and Mr Jennings said' he would approve of the transfer of licenses from districts possessed of too -many to districts that had" too few % T \ S J!? S "Qfastertoii) told the House that- ihere wcl-e • children m Mastertoh who hadinever seen a drunken man. ;When '.np-llcense was carried m Jfasterton. people had predicted the ruin of thf» town. But to-day it was one of the Roundest towns m,. New Zealand from a financial standpoint. Mr. Glenn thought SSnnM 8 ! «W««». was whether licenses should.be placed where tho .people wanted them or not. He, had seen more drunS5S S th" "f Cdu n-ry. without !H2! ? ; . an ln hls own .atetrict,. with voices Bm WiaSl>eaa a SeCo ? d time on lhc