NEW ZEALAND PARLIAMENT IN THE NEWS.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21086, 12 July 1938, Page 6

NEW ZEALAND PARLIAMENT IN THE NEWS.

Last week in Parliament was by no means an inspiring example of I lie value of parliamentary discussions. Outside I lie main speeches, the contributions the back benchers, with one or two exceptions, made to the discussions, were not very convincing. The mover and seconder of the Address in-Reply motion have been warmly complimented by their fellow members, but towards the end of the week it soon became only too clear that the Government is not ready to go on with its main legislative, programme. Doubtless, it has suddenly dawned on the rank and file of members that the life of the present Parliament is slowly ebbing away and they have not been given many opportunities to air their views. In the earlier session the discussion has been restricted to Ministers and a group of Members who have been favoured because of their association with certain electorates. As a matter of fact the Government’s following is unwieldy when it comes to speech making. Towards the end of the week it became plain that the House was marking time. The Minister of Finance explained that delay in the presentation of the Budget was due to the rush of work in the Government Printing Office and the Budget is not expected to make its appearance for some days. Some rather interesting points have been raised during the debate. The most intriguing situation was created by the Independents in the House, who challenged the Government on the alleged disadvantages of party alignments in the House in the consideration of important measures. The war was carried right into the Government and Opposition camps, by the tabling of an amendment to the Address in-Reply resolution. It is nevertheless significant that the Member for Nelson, who was selected by the Government to broadcast his address on behalf of the Independents in the House, did not find his way into the same lobby as the mover and seconder of the amendment. On one point, at least, the Opposition successfully challenged the Government claim, namely on the rate of interest. The Prime Minister’s statement was questioned, and so far the Government has not been able to refute Mr Coates’s claim for the credit.