PARLIAMENT

Southland Times, Issue 17733, 10 August 1917, Page 7

PARLIAMENT

THURSDAY, 9th AUGUST. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. (Per United Press Association.) WELLINGTON, August 9. The House met at 2.30. NEW BILLS. Mr P. C. Webb gave notice to introduce the War Regulations Amendment Bill. Mr A. Walker gave notice of intention to introduce the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act Amendment Bill. THE GAS TROUBLE. Replying to Mr Hornsby, Mr Massey said; he had done everything possible to end the trouble between the Wellington Gac Company and employees. He had many conferences with both parties, as a result of which he thought the dispute had been settled. Unfortunately there are always differences of opinion regarding the interpretation of these agreements, and when he left the conference he had no idea that the agreement was going to be broken. He did not know why it was broken, but he suspected there was .some influence at work of which he was not fully cognisant. He regretted that such a position should arise at a crisis like this, and thought that if the employers and employees showed a little more give and take the better it would he. He suggested that the Government take the works over and run them. He did not know what the workers would think of that. The trouble at present seemed to be not with the gasworkers but with the waterside workers, who refused to unload coal for the Gas Company. Mr Hornsby : There is only one man (an employer) who is preventing the agreement from being carried out, Mr Massey said he did not know what the others were doing if one man was holding it up. He hoped the dispute would soon be settled. LOCAL TANNERIES. Replying to Mr Witty, Mr Massey said he agreed that our industries should not be stopped for lack of raw material, and he would consider the position of local tanneries in connection with the export of hides. FIRST READINGS. The following bills were introduced and read a first time :—Christchurch Milk Supply and Markets Amendment Bill (Mr Ell) ; Waiatarica Lake Reserve and Public Bodies Empowering Bill (Hon. A. M. Myers) ; Wanganui Harbour Board Vesting Bill (Mr Veitchl ; Parliamentary Representation and Expeditionary Forces Adjustment Bill (Hon. Mr Massey). ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES.

Mr McCallum asked the Premier if he would take steps to fix the electoral boundaries, giving both islands a definite number of seats, and avoiding the difficulty which arose when licensed houses shifted into a no-license district. He did not suggest that this should apply to the next election, but he asked the Premier to consider the point. Mr Massey, in reply, said he did not think a licensed house could be transferred now. He saw a difficulty while in Britain in the way of fixing boundaries, as the population was constantly shifting. As, however, it was almost certain that legislation would be brought down before next election he would give the whole question careful consideration. RAILWAY ROLLING STOCK; THE COMMISSION’S REPORT. The Minister of Railways laid orr the table the report of the Railway Rolling Stock Commission. Mr Wilford criticised the evidence and finding of the commission at length, contending that the Minister had not carried out his promise to appoint an outside expert to report on the condition of the railway rolling stock. Instead a commission had been secretly appointed after the Department had seven months in which to clean things up. Messrs Veitch, Dr Thacker, and Hindmarsh characterised the inquiry as onesided, and protested against thousands of pounds being wasted in such a futile way at a time when the domniion should be conserving every penny.

Mr Herries, in reply, said that the criticism of those members opposing him was simply the result of spleen. Had they found one particle of evidence in the report to justify their attacks they would have acclaimed the commission’s work as highly valuable to the dominion. Mr Wilford had asked for a royal commission, and having got it but it not having returned the verdict he expected, he now turned and denounced its proceedings. The charges made by Mr Wilford against the condition of the rolling stock were grave charges, and the necessity of clearing up such allegations more than justified the setting up of the commission. He defended the administration of Mr Hiley, General Manager. That gentleman’s reputation as a railway expert would be greatly enhanced as the result of his period of public work in New Zealand. The Minister repudiated the suggestion that railway administration suffered in any way as the result of Mr Hiley’s connection with the Defence Department, where he was doing invaluable work for the dominion. The House rose at 5.30. EVENING SITTING - THE BUDGET DEBATE. The House resumed at 7.30. The debate on the Budget was resumed by Mr W. A. VEITCH (Wanganui), who opened by remarking that the Labour leaders had to face the present crisis with a great sense of responsibility, because if by their actions public opinion was moulded with a friendly tendency towards Labour, then all would be well, but if otherwise, then Labour must suffer. The condition of the wage earners was a matter of great moment to all sections of the community. He was of opinion that there was great discontent amongst the wage earners, largely because sufficient energy had not been shown in attacking the question of the cost of living. They also complained, and not without reason, of want of sympathy from the Government, the Premier being well known to be no friend of organised labour. Profiteering was still rampant, and although wages had increased somewhat, that increase did not meet the advanced cost of living. The curtailment of railway traffic was being carried out with unnecessary severity, resulting in the destruction of country roads, to say nothing of inconvenience to thousands of suburban residents who were compelled to come into the towns because the means of reaching their homes was cut off. There was not such a shortage in the running men on the railways to warrant such drastic economy. The organising of the railways on such a basis simply disorganised our social system. He believed the Premier meant well when he introduced the Rent Bill, but the fact remained that the clause permitting rents to be fixed on an S per cent. basis nullified the whole scheme, and he urged the Government to repeal that clause. The Premier remarked that the clause resulted in the stoppage of building operations in New South Wales.

Mr Veitch, continuing, said that did not apply in New Zealand, where we had insufficient building material to make building worth while. He commended the proposal to pay a war bonus to civil servants, but asked that anomalies discovered last year be eliminated and payment made in a thoroughly equitable manner. Everyone whose salary was not higher than at the rate of £315 should receive the bonus. The excessive number of resignations from the Public Service was commented upon, then the speaker proceeded to urge the greater development of co-operative ideals, especially in the direction of shipping and distribution of our products. TTie consumers in the Dominion would get their produce cheaper, and the exporter to London would get better returns by this means. All that

was required was statesmanlike organisation here and in England. He regretted the determination to confine the legislation of the session to war. measures. There was a large amount of social legislation necessary, and he urged Ministers to galvanize their latent talent and not justify other people in saying of them what they seemed to say of themselves, that they were not able to cope with the war and social problems at the same time. Mr R. P. HUDSON (Motueka) said that in launching his gigantic taxation proposals the Minister of Finance had been accused of inconsistenecy, but political, social, and military conditions had been so by the abnormal state of things that it was not possible for anyone to remain consistent. He regretted the absence from the Budget of a generous programme of public works, benefiting back block settlers whose roads and schools were being starved in a manner highly detrimental to country communities. Our old age pensioners were deserving of more liberal treatment. Thrift was punished by our pensions regulations, and he put forward a plea for a substantial increase in the payments, contending that they should be not restricted, but universal in application. The speaker generally approved the taxation proposals of the Budget, one fly in the ointment being the tax on tea, which he regarded as a hardship. The encouragement of minor industries was advocated, afforestation urged, and a development of mineral wealth championed as one of the mainstays of the Dominion’s prosperity. Mr J. McCOMBS (Lyttelton) said the policy of the Budget was “get rich quick, for to-morrow the soldiers return,” the idea evidently being that profits should be made while the opportunity lasted. A Government which did not hesitate to conscript men would not look at the scheme outlined by the member for Timaru to conscript wealth. We pledged the last man and the last shilling. The last man would be sent all right, but we were borrowing the last shilling at a rate that varied anywhere from 7 to 10 per cent. After the supper adjournment Mr McCombs reiterated his previous criticism on the remission of income tax on war bond interest, and on the organisation of New Zealand Brigades at the front. He rediculed the abolition of the profits tax, which was a confession of irapotency on the part of the Minister, who should have followed Mr Bonar Law’s example and amended the tax by eliminating anomalies. It was claimed by the Budget that the Board of Trade was very very active. What they had done was to keep down the price of butter, but put up the price of bread. Per head living was dearer in New Zealand than in the remotest villages of France, while the general cost of living had been mounting all the time. What formerly cost £1 was now costing £1 7s 4d. The Cost of Living Bill was the greatest piece of political hypocrisy ever foisted on Parliament. Discussing the supply of coal and wheat he said that when the coal miners talked of “going slow” sedition regulations were passed and men were sent to gaol, but when the farmers refused to grow wheat because they could not get the price they wanted they were not sent to gaol because they were the friends of the Government. With all the talk of going slow the miners produced 48,311 tons of coal in excess of the previous year’s record, while the farmers grew 100,000 acres less wheat than the previous year. The Minister had to confess that the farmers were so unpatriotic that he was compelled to go to Australia and buy wheat for the people of the Dominion. Yet the farmers were still out of gaol.

Mr J. M. DIXON (Chalmers) expressed satisfaction at the assurance of the Premier that the rumours of want of harmony amongst the members of the National Government were quite unfounded. The rise of the rumours was, he was afraid, fostered for the purpose of creating dissension, and he hoped they would be of no avail. Most of the taxing proposals he approved of, but beer and spirits could

and should bear heavier imposts. The administration of suburban trains was condemned. The debate was adjourned on the motion of Dr Thacker, and the House rose at 11.20.