IS IT SETTLED?

Sun (Christchurch), Volume IV, Issue 1065, 11 July 1917, Page 5

IS IT SETTLED?

CURTAILMENT OF RACING. A MINISTEKIAL STATEMENT. [From Our Own Parliamentary Reporter.} WELLINGTON, July 10. The projected curtailment of racing throughout the Dominion was the subject of a question submitted to the Hon. G. W. Russell (Minister of Internal Affairs) in the House of Representatives this afternoon, by Mr Hunter (Waipawa), who asked whether it was correct that Cabinet had decided to adopt the recommendations made by district committee:-!, and whether, if the announcement were correct, it would not lie in the spirit of fair play and equity to have given single-day clubs an opportunity of being heard, and whether the Minister would ask Cabinet to reconsider the matter, with the object of rein stating some of those one-day clubs? The Minister explained that the nu- , inerous requests for the curtailment of ■ racing came not only from those who objected to racing, but also from racing owners who recognised the anomaly of the publication on one page of a news- , paper of a huge list of casualties and in another page racing as usual, with a huge increase in toialisator returns. Members: Often on the same page. . Mr Russell said the Government had ' submitted to the racing and trotting conferences two proposals—one that , the number of racing days should be cut down by one-half, and the other that the number should be cut down by ' one-third. The racing authorities felt ! themselves unable to prepare two discriminating schedules, and, therefore, requested that a reduction of one-third ! should be recognised. Cabinet "decided ] that that should be the reduction. The responsibility for preparing a scheme ' of curtailment, and the adjustment and ' alb-t'-ient of tot.nlisator permits, was ■ jha! led over to the racing authorities — ' I a : ourse which had been followed for a < j number of years past. The Racing ' (Conference and the Trotting Conference ( I submitted the schedules of recommendations to the Government. The Go- ! eminent received no recommendations from the district committees. Sir j George Clifford had been the channel tof communication between the Governhi'.ent and the two main bodies. Mr Russell went on to say that he was not prepared to admit that, the whole of Ahc adjustments which had been made i had been made in the best possible,, (direction. (Hear, hear.) lie thought' t ithat in some cases mistakes had been I | made. Personally, he had no hesitation f in saying in the House, as he had said \ outside, that the objection to racing did ( not come from country districts, on account of their small meetings, but had';' come from the populations of large! 1 centres against the increased stream of > j money that had passed through the : - totalisator machines while the war was : on. The matter has. however, been ' i finally settled. |> j Members: Oh no! j'' The Minister said that if there were i any complaints to be made these should < be made against the Racing ami Trot-j J ting Conferences. He suggested that the position should be accepted by the member for Waipawa. Any remedy I |to be provided must come from the ( j racing people themselves. He referred t to the arrangements that have been ' imade for safe-guarding the financial \ :interests of thoso clubs whose race t meetings would bo stopped by providing for them out of the profits of the clubs h j, who continued running. j