PARLIAMENTARY NEWS.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 15319, 15 September 1920, Page 5

PARLIAMENTARY NEWS.

LABOR- -AS EMPLOYER: AMUSING QUESTIONS IN THE HOUSE. (From Our Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, thi_ .lay. Th-.. vVeliinrjton City Ocuncii hvi'r.oyijfd i. contract from* Mr Eobt. Sempl«:. former Labor inrimhor, and a number oi. minors 1.0 drive the long tunm-l required for the extension of the water supply. Its terms were published yesterday, and led Mr D. Jones to raise an amusing series of questions to the Minister of Labor. He suggested tbafc Somple -was introducing a system of indentured labor. ■"What did you say?" nsked the Premier m a startled tone. "Indentured labor," repeated Kaiapoi's member, impressively. Ho went on to say that the tunnel workers would not be able to leave work without a doctor's certificate. They would be prohibited from striking, because if they did they would lose" all the. benefits of tbe' contract. Mr Howard (ironica|ly) : Shame! Mr Jones went on to ask if it was m order for such an arrangement "to' be made iii this free and enlightened . country. (Laughter.) y \ I Sir Wm. Herries, Minister of Labor, replied that tho matter was between the Wellington City Council and the contractor. If there was any broach of the labor laws be would be very happy — (Laughter). Mr Parry: To take action — that's right. Sir' Wm. Herries: Now that my attention has been called to the matter I will '.ask the Labor Department to see that there is no infringement of the labor ■ laws by either Council or contractor. ' J Mr Parry: Is he objecting to co-oper-ators getting the fuli fruits of their labor? I . - GAS QUALITY. I Gas consumers m several centres will be ' interested m a question raised by Mr j Parry as to whether the Government iii- . tends to legislate this session for the ; protection of gas consumers against gas iof insufficient quality. Considerable dissatisfaction, he remarked, was existing owing to the fact that, although the gas pressure had gone down, the bills remained approximately 'tho same. * Tlie Hon. E. P. Lee," Minister an charge of tho Board of Trade, said that the quality of tho gas was not a matter for tho Board, but lie would bring the qu^s'tion before the Government's notice. • The Premier was appealed to, but stated tliat Cabinet had not yefc t considered the whole legislative programme of the session. IMMIGRATION BILL: ROYAL ASSENT UNNECESSARY. "Will this Bill bo reserved for, the Royal assent?" asked tho Hon. A. T. Ngata when the Premier was moving' the second reading of the Immigration' Restriction Bill, which gives the Govern-, ment drastic power to control the immigration of persons of British or Irish birth. The Premier replied that at first he believed the Bill wouW have to be reserved for the Royal assent, but m view of the resolution passed by the Imperial War Conference m 1918 he thought there would* bo n& necessity for' this procedure. The ' War .Conference resolved . that it is all inherent function of the Governments of the several communities of the British Commonwealth, * including * India, that each should eiijoy complete control of the composition of its own population by means of restriction of immigration from any of the other communities. This, said Mr. Massey, was agreed to by all the representatives of the Empire, including India. % Mr Downie Stewart: It might be necessary to obtain the Royal assent m the case of foreigners. Mr Massey: Yes, m the case of countries with whioh Britain' lias a treaty. „ Among tho supporters of -the Immigration Restriction Bill was the member far Gisborno,~\vho commented' favorably on the power given to stop the .influx' of revolutionary agitators. 4t was a very useful thing to give Customs power .under Ministerial instruction to say "yes" or "no" to anybody. He urged strengtheriI ing the oath clause, so as to exclude persons, who had .been associated with dis- ' loyalists of had been imprisoned for sedition. _,_... . Among the speakers during the discussion, favoring tho principle of the, Bill, was 'Mr Downie Stewart, -who suggested, a friendly, arrangement with the Chinese Government io restrict tho niimbor of immigrants annually. This, he was as-, sured by tho Chinese Consul m New Zealand, would be agreed to. The speaker suggested tho abolition of the poll tax, whioh only resulted m tho exclusion of the best class of Chinese and the inclusion of tho coolie class, whose tax was paid by syndicates. - - - - , P REPLIES TO QUESTIONS. I Sir Hea'ton .Rhodes said it was riot true that any aeroplanes had been, given or ; lcnt-to;. a -syndicate at ' Timaru. .', i Tlio Premier, replying to questions by Messrs Holland and Parry, denied that; cither tho Government or> the Railway I Department was responsible for the strike at. tho Huntly coal mines. '■ » ' ' ' Replying to Mr D. Jones, the Hon. W. Nosworthy said he had received a tfable, stating . that tho expert .who was. being sent by the Australian Commonwealth to inspect New Zealand potatoes, would be leaving Australia, for that ; purpose on Friday next. . . ■ » Sir Heaton Rhodes, replying to ft .question by Colonel Mitchell, • said the^ military equipment now being brought- into tho country was not exactly , a, gift frOm the Mother Country, but was giveYi to New Zealand m exchange for divisional equipment whicli our forces had m Prance, much of which was. worn out and needed repairs.— Prcss^Assn^