PARLIAMENT PROROGUED.

Colonist, Volume LIV, Issue 13387, 10 April 1912, Page 1 (Supplement)

PARLIAMENT PROROGUED.

A Gazette notice published to-day prorogues Parliament to 27th June.

MR ATMORE'S VIEWS

\ From "Th^ Colonist," April 3.)

Interviewed yesterday by a "Colonist" representative in regard to his opinion of tho Ministry formed by the PTon. T. Ma.ckoiizio, Mi\ Harry Atmore M.P., .'-''id ho bolicvd the ,people would judge the new Cabinet on tho policy tliey were Ko'll'- *n pnrsi'e rather than the personnel. "If the Cabinet is prepared," said Mr. Atinor'.\ "to tackle tho biggest question of all in my opinion, tho cost of living, there is no reason why they should-not last, with prr haps one or two slight alterations." Iv. regard td them !>^'ng practic.a'ly all ne-n T>ien to ofiico with the exception of tlw P'rimo Minister, lie said, the Opposition would he in a still worse plight if called noon to form a Ministry from that ctandpoint as they could not put one man in who had held office before. Consequently if the people reqiiired men tor. 'the 'Cabir.pt -who have hnd previous experience of Cabinet- work, tho Ministry must «£:'nosjesfuty be- formed from the Tib'M'nl fjkle of. tho Hoiise. So far as th/> Prime was concerned, while perhaps not the strongest man, he was certainly the safest at the pro-

sent juncture and the fact that ho was a freeholder would give the,small farmer a certain amount of confidence in hie Administration.

"If,", said Mr. Atmore. "the Govern-. lßont decides to tackle the question of tho cost of living in <i whole-hearted manner by giving increased facilities for land settlement and thus increase the number of primary producers, the.ro is no reason why the lot of the worker and ..the. ■email farmer alike should not be vastly improved."

"When tho public obtain, per medium of tho platform, full and true accounts of the recent no-confidence debate,1' Mr.1 Atmore 'continued, "then I feel sure that a- revulsion of feeling must set in throughout'the Dominion against the Opposition. Take one instance. Th<? opinion' was very prevalent, and still is in many quarters, that the Opposition, not only'on the platform prior to the election, .severely condemned the Government borroAvinjr policy whereby £18,O0{),0(X) was added to the national debt in six years, and I consider part of tho revulsion of feeling will come about when tli,e public learn that the Oppofdfion did not vote against the loans, but in*almost every case voted ;*for thorn, and therefore, if it was reckless borrowing as the Opposition alleged they were equally guilty with the Go- [ vcrutnent."

In regard' to the land question, Mr Atmore said'tint the return he asked for in the House during the recent session showed that there'was £13,800,000 worth of land wsiti held by Europeans, only taking blocks of the capital 'value of .-1'2~,.U(K) -and over, consequently the real laud question of New Zealand was not th<> Native hind question, but h.-ow'to bring nearly £11,000,000 worth of land held by Europeans into closer settlement. In the minds of most- people tho Native-land Question was the land question of New Zealand, but the foregoing figures showed that this was not the case, as ■there wevo only £2.000,000 worth of Native lands that could be cut ui> for settlement, and not that much if provision was ni'id.c for Natives .who at present were not working their lane. Various Opposition leaders had referred, consciously or unconsciously, to the Native hud question as the principal question, and the public had become imbued with tho ide-i tint there was an unlimited area of Native land awaiting settlement. If all tiie Natives were forced to live on their Ivrnds in snrill holding", there would bo .-.'-■ r.y little left over (in .which to settle Europeans.''

"I cannot find," said Mr Atmore, "that Opposition, members in their .-.perches- have referred to the £1.3,300,----000 worth or land constituting the areas held by Europeans, but on almost every occasion you will Jind reference in their ? sp:'c:'hes to the smaller area he'd by Natives. One caniH.it insist too _ strongly upon the necessity for the Natives to bo settled upon their land in small holdings, for at tho prevent time if the Maori is allowed to .sell his land outright aid you entrust him with the money he will probably fritter it away in tho piuclius.t- of motor" cars and other luxuries, and in a few years' time I h-N will have to b 0 kept by the State."

Referring: a'£:iin to the Cabinet, Mr. Atmore ;:,aid, "I consider the public are not so much inelimd to wrangle, over the personnel of the Ministry as to look eagerly, forward to the kind of measures the Cabinet is likely to bring forward. In short, tho people, I believe, will judge the Cabinet on its actions, not on its personnel." Asked as to his own position, Mr. Atmore said he was prepared to support any good rn-easino that was brought forward irrespective of party considerations. There wore sufficient- able m?n in the l.Touw to do o whole" lot of useful work if party shackles did not interfere with thoir usefulness' and he considered it a bitter satin• on • party government if 80 men -fresh from an appeal to the country could not agree, upon an Executive, and after pushing party wrangles on otic side, grapple with tlie questions-awaiting settlement.