THE WEEK IN THE HOUSE

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21086, 12 July 1938, Page 9

THE WEEK IN THE HOUSE

Wearisome Debate On Address-in-Reply j Budget Likely Next Week| (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON. July 11. Almost unimaginable depths of dullness have been plumbed in the Address-in-Reply debate which has practically monopolised the attention of the House of Representatives during last week. A considerable measure of progress has certainly been made with the debate, but electioneering is very much in the air and it seems that practically every member of the House wishes to exercise his right to talk. In the Parliamentary sphere at present, interest centres chiefly in the I presentation of the Budget, but aci cording to present indications it does I not seem likely that the Financial ■ i Statement will make its appearance i this week. The Printing Office is said | to have been responsible for some delay I but possibly another contributing factor is the amount of work which is being handled by the Minister of "ini ance, the Hon. W. Nash. However, it lis gathered that all the preliminary I work has been dealt with and that Mr Nash will shortly be engaged in putting the final touches to his review j of the Dominion’s finances. Expenditure Rising I “Budget talk” has not yet become prevalent in the lobbies, but already I there is a certain measure of speculation, based largely on the published annual accounts, regarding possible financial developments for the current | financial year. Although last year | closed with a surplus of £BOO,OOO, it is not anticipated in well-informed circles that there will be fny appreciable measure of taxation relief this year. It is pointed out that national expenditure is tending to increase rather than decrease and that, although some increase in revenue may be expected as a result of higher wages, last reason’s drop in wool prices must exert an influence in the opposite direction. A complete revision of the taxing system has been planned by the Government ever since its first year of office, and a committee of Labour members was set up to investigate the 1 matter. So far nothing has been said officially regarding the results of the committee’s activities, and it is not ) thought likely that plans for revised i taxation will be included in this year’s , Budget.

The delay in the preparation of the Budget, coupled with the action of the Opposition in leaving with Labour members the responsibility for keeping alive the Address-in-Reply debate has probably caused the Government some concern. Indeed, there is a feeling that, but for the necessity of passing the Imprest Supply Bill before the end of last month, Parliament might still have been in recess. It is obvious that the Government’s major programme for the session is still incomplete.

Debating Honours The debating honours during the week went to the Minister of Industries and Commerce, the Hon. D. G. Sullivan, as a Government speaker, and the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes, as spokesman for the Opposition. In Mr Sullivan’s case the fact that extensions of time are not being granted was probably of some assistance, as the Minister, with unlimited time as his dispo. il almost invariably becomes monotonously discursive. Within Lie short space of 30 minutes, however, bi was able last Tuesday to put forward a well constructed argument on hrs own pet theory of industrial control. Mr Forbes, for his part, scored heavily the following day with a calm and matter-of-fact survey of the Government’s social security proposals, particularly from the point of view of the heavy taxation likely to be required t_> finance the health and superannuation schemes. Mr Forbes studiously eschewed verbal fireworks, but he pointed to the fact that an extra £10,000,000 would be required from

taxation and warned the Government that throughout the country there was grave apprehension concerning the future.

The main point of interest in the debate arose on Friday afternoon when

a second no-confidence amendment was moved by Mr A. C. A. Sexton (Independent, Franklin). His amendmens set out that the Government had forfeited the confidence of the House on the grounds that it had perpetuated the party system, but owing to the forms of Parliamentary procedure, the net result was that the seven points of the indictment against the Govern-

ment, made by the Leader of the Onposition, the Hon. A. Hamilton, in his no-confidence amendment a week previously, were deleted, leaving c.dy the bare question of lack of confidence to be determined at the end of the debate.

A Curious Feature The most curious feature was ‘hat Mr Sexton’s amendment involved the putting of two questions to the House —first whether or not the grounds advanced by Mr Hamilton for lack of confidence in the Government should stand; and second the actual grov ids of the second amendment. Both Government and Opposition were opposed to Mr Sexton’s move, but on the ist question Labour members had to vote with the two Independents or else pass a vote of no-confidence in themselves. On the second question, Government and Opposition voted together, causing a good-humoured scene in the division lobby, with political enemies cheerfully singing “The More We Are Together. ’ The final day’s sitting of the week also witnessed the introduction of four Government bills. They were the Arbitration Amendment Bill, the Nr.v Zealand Council of Law Reporting Bill, the Surveyors Bill and the Municipal Corporation Amendment Bill— all measures of such little real import as to arouse gra.e suspicions that departmental pigeon holes had been searched for the occasion.

The prospects for the coming week are that the Address-in-Reply debate should be completed by Wednesday. The four new Bills and other matters should enable the Government to show a semblance of activity for the remainder of the week, and there is a prospect that the Budget may be ready for presentation by Tuesday, July 19.