ATTACK ON REFORM

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1081, 19 September 1930, Page 11

ATTACK ON REFORM

MR. LYSNAR SWINGS OVER TO INDEPENDENTS MR. COATES CRITICISED THE SUN’S Parliahncntary Reporter PARLIAMENT BLDGS.. Tliurs. A surprise was given in the House this afternoon during the debate on the Railways Statement when Mr. W. D. Lysnar (Independent Reform—Gisborne) attacked the Leader of the Opposition, the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, and the Reform Party with the accusation of having caused the railways to get Into difficulties by expending large sums on unproductive works when they might have been building new lines to increase revenue. Mr. Lysnar is nominally an Independent Reform member, but the present session has found him drifting toward the Independents and his outburst today was almost bitter. “The Leader of the Opposition has laughed about this report and treated it in a disparaging waf*” Mr. Lysnar began. “I regret his attitude and particularly his attempt to make it a political question.” Mr. F. Waite (Refoiun —Clutha) : You ■ will get your line. ‘ The Leader of the Opposition ridicules these committees,” Mr. Lysnar continued, ‘‘but he was responsible for setting them up. I hope and ask that the Government will not be stampeded by his attitude. What lines are under construction at the present time that he has not sanctioned?” Mr. Speaker: I would remind the lion, member that this report deals with the working railways only. Mr. Lysnar asked for latitude to show how railway construction had hampered the working of the railways. The deviation works at Auckland and Tawa Flat had run the department into expenses of about £5,000,000 and the Leader of the Opposition was responsible for that, but it had not brought another penny to the department or another ton of freight to either Auckland or Wellington. Mr. J. S. Fletcher (Independent--Grey Lynn): What about Gisborne? Mr. Speaker again Teminded Me. Lysnar that the report dealt with working railways and not construction work. Mr. J. T. Hogan (Independent— Rangitikei) rose to a point of order and said that one part of the- report referred to railways under construction. Mr. Lysnar began to refer to the now railway stations at Auckland and Wellington when Mr. Speaker interI rupted him to give his ruling on the point of order and said that while lie would not stop members from referring to anything mentioned in the report he would remind them that the report was on working railways. Mr. Lysnar said that practically every uncompleted railway in the country could have been completed with the money spent by the Reform Party on the schemes he had mentioned and the country would have benefited in revenue. Then the Leader of the Opposition had moved to stop all railway construction. Why hadn’t he done that when he was in power instead of spending £5.000,000 on unproductive works ? Continuing, Mr. Lysnar referred to

the railway workshop reorganisation j f and said that they would have to stop j i reckless expenditure and waste. | l “This Honourable House knows how t I have treated the Reform Party in th* l past and knows how little it has done.” t Lo concluded. T will always oppose it as long as it tries to bring party poll- i tics into national questions. We must t get down to bedrock. The ridicule of the Leader of the Opposition will never • \ do any good.*'