PROGRESS OF SESSION.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 17775, 11 October 1927, Page 6

PROGRESS OF SESSION.

THE WORK AHEAD. END IN NOVEMBER

(Special Correspondent). WELLINGTON, Saturday. Tho chief business before Parliament at the moment is consideration of tho amendments to the Customs Tariff, but up to the present tho House has made very heavy work of it. Hopes are entertained that tho Tariff will be out of the wav some time next week, and about Thursday is mentioned as the probab e time, but from their nrsc bite at the cherry one would think that members like it so much that they well be chary about consuming it too soon. How tiie House will be able to pass the schedule in about lour sitting clays is hard to see alter its preliminary canter, but with the prevailing fine weather members are getting the want-to-get-home feeling, and next \7eek they will probably decide to go ahead at a gallop. One thing is certain, and that is that if they do not take to work more kindly than they have been doing ot late, "the Government will not hesitate to drivo them. It will have the means to do so, because the House lias agreed to meet on Monday evenings for the remainder of the session. \Vhen this stage has been agreed to, all that remains to suit the Government’s convenience is for Mr Speaker to announce from the chair, without motion of any kind, that from now on Government iiiLs may be introduced atid put through all their stages at one sitting, thus suspending the 12.TU a.m. rule under wliich no new business can be gone on with when that hour lias been reached. This will be, as it has always necessarily been, a tremendous lever in the hands of the Minrstry of the day, for it simply means that the longer members talk and db'ay the transaction of business, flic longer they will have to remain if the Government is intent on getting so many Hills put through all tlieir stages per day. The session lias now entered upon its sixteenth week, and since the House met, 24 Bills have been disposed of. home of these, of course, are of purely a formal character, sucli as the Imprest Supply Bills, winch have to be passed at 'tie end of every month if Government servants are to receive- tlieir salaries. There are about 35 or 3(5 Government Bi is to be dealt with yet, but most of these will not bo contentious. The Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Bill, wliich is one of tho number to come down, will, of course, be productive of much discussion, for it will probably contain something about payment by results, and when it gets into Committee it will be surprising if the farmer members of tho House do not seek to attack the principle of preference to Unionists. If there is a majority of the House in favour of putting a brake on the powers of the Arbitration Court, they will have it when it comes to consideration of this measure, and it would be almost too much to hope that some attempt to this end will not bo made.

Apart from the purely Government Bills, contentious and not very contentious, there are a few oilier snags to be negotiated. Those comprise the Licensin':; Bill, Bcligious Exercises in Schools Bill, and the Gaming Amendment Bill. Tho Licensing Bili, although introduced by the'’Government, is, of course, a non-party Bill, and tho House can deal with it as it pleases. Should this Bill get to tho Committee stage, and this point is by no means clear yet, one may certainly expect to see drastic amendments made to the existing 'licensing law. Opponents of the threeissue ballot paper are confident that they have a -majority of members in the House favourab'y disposed to the elimination of the middle, or Statepurchase and Control, issue, and a. count of heads discloses that they arc about right. There is bound to be a. great fight over this Bill, but it must be remembered that even if it gets through the Lower House, it has to pass the Legislative Council before becoming law, and what the “Lords” will do with it is only known to the gods. It has to get through the Committee stage in the House first, however, and shou'd it be brought down late in the session, and be sandwiched amongst the Gaming and Religious Exercises in Schools Bills, those members who will be, and in fact, already are, bursting to get away home, may decide to waste little time about it. If the second rending debate is going to be a very prolonged sort of an affair the Bill can be kept well down on the Order Paper after that, and if members want to close down the session before the due time for the com mittal of the Bill, that is for them to say. Tho Government intends to afford them an opportunity of considering the Bill. Tho Religious Exercises in Schools Bill is bound to produce a tremendous discussion, but the odds are in favour of its passing both Houses. That is the general opinion ,In the lobbies. There is re’ekoned to be n majority of about 10 in favour of the Bill in the House, and it is thought that there is a slight majority in tho Council. There’s many a slip ’twixt cup and lip, but the supporters of the Bill are sanguine of success this year if no embargo is placed in the way of the most full and free discussion of Ihe measure. The member for Nelson (Air Atmore), is one of those who are out to fight the Bill with all the force at his command, and he has an amendment in favour of the introduction of the Nelson system. Possibly other amendments will be moved, too, so there is every pro-pret of a most spirited battle whin flic Bill comes on the floor of Ihe House.

The Gamin" Amendment Bdl. vine I ', proposes to allow the telegraphing ol bets to the course, the use of the double to'nlisator, and the publication of dividends in the newspapers, will be fought hard, and the members of tlm Labour Par tv, who are no lovers of the Racing Conference, may try to lio’d passage of the Bill up. 'Phis measure in in eliarge of Sir George Hunter, but it is stated in Racing cire'cs that it is not viewed unfavourably by some members of the Government.

With the Tariff to be disposed of. the Rural Intermediate Credit Bill, and tlie Bills mentioned above, it can he seen that the House will have to put its best foot forward if it is to close down bv the second week in November. With the passage last night of the final classes of the Estimates, one. big luird'e has boon negotiated, end frnn now on the Government, wifi have every sitting day of the week available for the transaction of its business. The Public Works Statement wiM conio along very soon, and in addition to the debate on the Statement lltere will be a debate on Imperial Affairs. but these should not take more than a eoup’e of days to dispose of. Th° Prime Minister, having taken the bull by the horns and told the Opposition phiinlv tbit fur the future there will have to be less talk and more work, it eertainlv looks as if the lnninoss of the session wil' bo expedited, and that about the time Cup weeklooms on the hori-'oii. members will bo wanting to take themselves off to another nlare. In any ease, Mr Contes has told the House that for the future it nil! sit until Government business has been got out of the way. no metier how many hours have been absorbed in the proepss. The dismission on the Tariff hns not, up to the nresent., been of a v< v v on livenin'? eleirnctor. When members fen spend from half-past three in the n r tornoon uoti’ noarlv midnight <!'■;- oiissin" the dntv on lemons, it may he tbeucht that thev have a love of pams--1 eking detail, for the items in the Tariff schedules run into hundreds, hut a few verv late siftings next week nviv fool rhoir ardour fo’- ta'l,-. from t'>e rvvnt. of view of Lnhit'ies or tbo legi-lati'-e halls other than politicI inns, a good job, too.