United Party Fails in Snap Division

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 531, 7 December 1928, Page 7

United Party Fails in Snap Division

UNEXPECTED MOVE LABOUR’S DECISIVE VOTE (THE SUN’S Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, To-day. Earlier than was anticipated by most people, the first division of the new House of Representatives was taken this afternoon, when Ministers proposed to lay on the table statements of the progress oi the various departments for a period of seven months. To each of the proposals the Leader of the Opposition, the Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Ward, took exception, and, after a short debate, a division was taken over the laying on the table of the statement of the Department of Industrial and Scientific Research. The motion to lay the report on the table was carried by 43 votes to 33. Hostilities opened when the Minister of Finance, the Hon. W. Downie Stewart, laid a financial statement on the table. Sir Joseph Ward thought that the Minister should give details of the statement, and explain it to the House. He wanted to know if the statement had been certified by the Auditor-Gen-eral. He did not believe that a Government whose fate was sealed should be allowed to lay such a paper on the table without members of the House having perused it. Why the secrecy? Why should it be kejit from the people? Was the move one for party purposes? As far as Sir Joseph knew, it was quite contrary to precedent to lay such a paper on the table, and he wished to make an emphatic protest against the procedure. Mr. Stewart replied that Sir Joseph was wrong when he said that the action was without precedent. He had looked up the records and had found that Sir Joseph had followed the same course in 1911, when the House was in the same stage as at present. So far as Treasury Bills were concerned, these were dealt with in the Budget. The statement would be circulated among members as soon as it was printed. Mr. T. M. Wilford (Hutt) asked the Minister what year he was referring to. Tho Minister: 1911. Mr. Wilford: That is the wrong year. It was 1912. Sir Joseph Ward said that the Minister had accused him of doing something which he had not done, as he was not in office at the time. The Hon. R. A. Wright: Why did you resign? Sir Joseph Ward: That was my business. Why hasn’t the Government resigned? Mr. Speaker had to call the chuckling members to order. Sir Joseph explained that Sir Thomas Mackenzie was Prime Minister at the time. Did Mr. Stewart dare to misrepresent him? Next the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, moved that a statement of the administration and operation of the working raiLvays to date be laid on the table. Sir Joseph Ward again took exception, and Mr. W. D. Lysnar (Gisborne) wanted to know what was wrong with the statement. Sir Joseph Ward, amid laughter, reminded him that he knew what was wrong with a certain licence granted by the Government recently. He continued that if all the Ministers were going to make similar statements, he did not know liow long Parliament would sit. He was not suspicious, and did not say that any Government had been guilty of dishonest practice, but he remembered a time when a party which had taken office 16 years ago had expressed what it would do if it got a chance to look through the pigeon-holes Here he was called to order. Next Sir Joseph made strong objection to the Prime Minister moving to lay on the table the statement of accounts of the Department of Industrial and Scientific Research. The gallery and the House were surprised when the United Party insisted on a division. The bells rang, and the motion was carried by 43 votes to 33. tlle Lab °ur members voted with the Government. The division list was:— AYES—43 Ar Langstone Aimstiong Linklater Barnard Lysnar Bitchener McCombs Burnett McKeen Campbell Macmillan Larr Mason Chapman Massey Coates Munro Dickie N’ash Kield O’Brien Fraser Parry Pom are Hamilton Samuel Harris Savage Henare Stewart H. Holland Sullivan H. E. Holland AVaite Howard Williams Hunter Wright Jones YoungKyle “ NOES—33 Atmore MacPherson Black Makitanara Bodkin Martin Broadfoot Jiunns Clinkard Murdoch Cobbe Ngata De la Perrelle Poison Donald Ransom Fletcher Rushwortli Forbes Smith Hawke Stallworthy Healy Tavern er Hogan Veitch Jenkins Ward Lye Wilford McDonald Wilkinson McDougall Education accounts were laid on the table by the Hon. R. A. Wright.