DELAY IN PARLIAMENT

Taranaki Daily News, 14 March 1935, Page 7

DELAY IN PARLIAMENT

EARLY RISING OF HOUSE GOVERNMENT HOUSE DINNER. EXPERTS EXPLAINING BILL. . MORTGAGE ADJUSTMENT PLAN. (By Wire—Parliamentary Reporter.) Wellington, Last Night. Another hold-up in the Government’s programme—this time a minor one—occurred to-night when the House went into adjournment at 5.30 p.m. instead of at midnight to enable the Ministers to attend a Government House dinner. It had been tentatively artanged by Mr. Forbes to seek an extension of the dinner adjournment until 10 p.m. and then work the House for the remaining two hours to midnight, but evidence was available that’ such a plan would be strenuously opposed by the Opposition, and Mr. Forbes at 5.30 obtained an adjournment until 2.30 p.m. to-morrow.

It would have been quite competent for the Ministers rto have attended the function without interfering with the business of the House. With the Mortgage Corporation Bill through its final phase the committee stages of the Broadcasting Bill could have been begun with the Government Whips left in charge of the House and the departmental head noting points of criticism for the Minister to reply to later. Obviously Mr. Forbes and Mr. Coates, in view of their difficulties with the Tank and file of the Coalition, welcomed the respite, since neither is anxious to see the stumbling block of the session—the Mortgagors Final Adjustment BillOn the floor of the House while internal differences, with the ever-present danger of defections, remain unsettled. Thus the enforced slowing down of progress increases the time available for composition of divided opinions. A start Seems already to have been made with this task, since this afternoon Mr. COates’ economic advisers, or “brain trust” as they are called, were available to members of the Coalition to explain any points in the Bill over which doubts existed. A number took advantage of this facility. Both during the afternoon and the evening numbers of them assembled in the Government Whips’ room.