SUNDAY ENTERTAINMENT

Taranaki Daily News, 23 March 1932, Page 7

SUNDAY ENTERTAINMENT

CONVICTION AT AUCKLAND LABOUR PARTY BRANCH APPEALS. DISMISSAL BY SUPREME COURT. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Auckland, Last Night. Questions of law governing the holding of Sunday evening entertainments were argued before Mr. Justice Reed in the Supreme Court to-day. The case was an appeal by the Auckland branch of the Labour Party against its conviction and fining by Mr. W. R. McKean, S.M., for holding an entertainment on a Sunday evening without having first obtained the permission of the City Council. The suggestion by His Honour that the case should be taken to the Court of Appeal was not accepted on the ground of the expense involved. His Honour said he had formed a very definite view during the course of the proceedings. A section of the Act made it penal to hold a concert or entertainment of any kind 0-pen to the public on a Sunday, Good Friday or Christmas Day. It had been held by Mr. Justice Herdman that the question whether admission was paid or not did not enter into the matter, so that the whole point to be decided was whether there was on this occasion an. entertainment.

It was true that the whole function could not properly be described as-an entertainment, but it was perfectly clear that for half the time there was what was strictly within the meaning of the word entertainment. ‘ It was probably subsidiary to the principal object of the meeting, but it undoubtedly formed an attraction and he thought it was an integral part of the programme. It really was probably the greatest inducement to a large number of those present. It was clear the appellant was responsible for holding an entertainment and the appeal would be dismissed with £7 7s costs and disbursements.