THE HOUSE.

Colonist, Volume LII, Issue 12681, 28 October 1909, Page 3

THE HOUSE.

The House met in the afternoon. Mr Fisher's Sunday Labour Bill was read a second time pro forma. In committee on Aid to Public Works and Lands Settlement Bill, Mr Herdman move^d a new clause providing that no grant of public money for expenditure on public works be paid without having been approved by an. Advisory Board. The mover said there was an enormous waste in the expenditure of public moneys on roads and bridges, and in some- cases this was done with a view of influencing electors. The chairman .ruled that the clause was : f oreigiv to the Bill. ■ An appeal to the Speaker resulted in the. chairman's ruling being upheld. On clause 3, providing £400,000 in respect of public works, other than railways, roads, and bridges, Mr Allen moved' the amount to be reduced by £200,000. ' ' . Mr Mas'Sey ■ urged the Premier to give the House fuller information re■specting the £400,000 for "other public works,'' which was 'a vague phrase. Mr T. E. Taylor would support a motion to strike out the clause altogether. The whole method of raising and spending public money needed reform. Mr Allen's amendment was negatived by 42 to 22. The Bill was reported unamended. A debate ensued on the motion for its-third reading. Mr Herries regretted some such scheme as embodied in his motion was not adopted, as it would prevent the I sweetening of electorates by Ministers, which was a scandal at present. Mr Hainan characterised the propo- * sal as undemocratic. Mr Masscy said it was too democratic to be supported by the Government. Parliament had no check and no control over public works expenditure. The haste shown in putting the Loan Bill before the House was unseemly. Ho asked if tire £50,000, the half annual subsidy to the Imperial 'Government on account for naval defence, had been paid. Tho House rose at 5.30 p.m. - In the House in the evening the debate, on the third reading of the Public Works Bill was. continued. Mr T. E. Taylor dealt at length with Mr Lloyd George's Budget proposals, and the methods adopted to secure a share for the community of the created value of lands in the Dominion, which had increased largely as the result of borrowed money. He said the system of taxation was most inequitable. There ought to be introduced a betterment principle so that the people who received unearned increment may not leave others to paj' the taxation. by means of the .Customs tariff. In the. past 17 years 28,000 freeholders in the Dominion paid six millions in land tax, but received 85 millions in the shap9 of unimproved value of their property. He could uot agree to the Opposition's proposal that Parliament should abrogate its functions and become a glorified road board. Mr Baume said that local government reform was badly needed to remedy the existing state of things. In connection with the execution of the public works Parliament should not be asked to discuss a great many small matters that at present were dealt with in tho House. He was a thorough believer in the betterment principle, but did not approve of increasing the burden of taxation on the small settlers. After much discussion Sir J. G. AVard rose to reply. He deprecated the introduction into tho debate of a discussion on laaid proposals not yet placed before the House. Ho ridiculed the flimsy pretext of Mr Allen. in moving a reduction of the amount allocated in clause 3 by one half, on tho ground of lack of details, whem lie knew the Government could not appropriate the amount imtil the purposes for which it was wanted were stated. Or the question urgency, he had made it clear when introducing the Bill that the Domin-ian was ni>t Ln need of money. Ho intimated that it was desirable to obtain the money before the end, of the nionith, as money was cheap and plentiful, and changes might take place at Home altering the state of the money market. Regarding the paj rment of the; naval subsidies, these were paid in. London on receipt of an application from the Admiralty. Up to the present they had not received a voucher since the subsidy had been increased, but the High Commissioner had instructions to pay it immediately lie received a" request to do so. The third reading was passed on the voices. The House rose at midnight.