DOMINION PARLIAMENT

Waikato Times, Volume 111, Issue 18618, 22 April 1932, Page 8

DOMINION PARLIAMENT

ADJUSTING EXPENDITURE

BILL FURTHER CONSIDERED.

A CLOSE DIVISION

WELLINGTON, Thursday

When the House resumed this afternoon, urgency was accorded the passage of the Expenditure Adjustment Bill, which was then further considered in Committee.

Speaking on clause 7, the Leader of the Opposition, Mr H. E. Holland, said this clause, which provided for the application of the salary and wages reductions to civil servants, and the clauses relating to pensions reductions were the most serious features or the Bill. He referred to petitions presented to the House urging that there he no further reductions in salaries and wages, and he stated these had been signed by well over 40,000 people, mostly of the business element. There were tens of thousands of business people who, having regard to the experience that had followed the previous wages reductions, were now asking there should he no further reductions, because they realised such a course would ho followed by serious economic consequences. Mr Holland declared that further reductions would be followed by a far greater proportion of unemployment and he said this contention_ was borne out by international investigation and by evidence presented to the_ Parliamentary Economy Committee laat year. Other Labour members supported the views expressed by Mr Holland. The Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, Minister in Charge of Unemployment, said a committee of departmental heads would be set up to investigate any anomalies arising out of the reductions. The clause was passed by 39 votes to 3i. Messrs H. Atmore, G. C. Black, A. Harris, J. A. Nash, H. M. Rushworth, A. M. Samuel, C. A. Wilkinson, and R. A. Wright voted with Labour.

Exception was taken by Labour members to the clause reducing grants to education boards, governing bodies of university colleges and local bodies. It was alleged by Mr J. A. Lee (Labour—Grey Lynn) that patients were being forced out of hospitals before they were convalescent on account of the" retrenchment policy and he said the position would be worse as a result of the latest proposal. Mr H. M. Rushworth (Country— Bay of Islands) submitted an amendment which he said ho had been asked to move by the Bay of Islands Hospital Board. The amendment sought to provide that bequest money used for the maintenance of hospitals should be subsidised out of the national funds. Labour members protested in the evening against further reductions in nurses’ salaries, contending that great hardship would be inflicted on junior nurses who were being called upon to perform arduous duties for a very small remuneration. Reference was made to the position that would be created if grants to hospital boards were reduced, and it was suggested that the necessity might arise for increased fees. Four and a-half hours were spent debating the clause which eventually was passed by 43 votes to 29. Messrs A. Harris, A. M. Samuel, H. Atmore, G. C. Black, H. M. Rushworth, and C. A. Wilkinson voted with Labour. Mr Rushworth’s amendment was lost on the voices. The House then discussed the saving of rights of contributors to the Superannuation Funds. Closure Applied. The closure was applied for the first time shortly after midnight, and the clause was then carried on the voices. Another long discussion developed on clause li, concerning the saving of rights of certain other persons with respect to compensation for loss of office or retiring allowances. In reply to labour questions, the Hon. E. A. Ransom, Minister of Lands, who was temporarily in charge of the Bill, said he understood the clause affected only four long-service officers. Ho mentioned the names of Colonel G. F. C. Campbell, Auditor and Controller-General, and Mr R. P. Ward, secretary of the Justice Department. They had legal rights under the 1866 Civil Service Act to payment of compensation for loss of office at the rate of one month’s^ salary for each year of service or to superannuation, but they were not entitled to both.

The House was still sitting at a late hour.

FURTHER PROGRESS. AMENDMENTS DEFEATED. SOME CLOSE DIVISIONS. APPLICATION OF THE CLOSURE. WELLINGTON, Friday. Sitting all night the House of Representatives made further progress with the Committee stage of the National Expenditure Adjustment Bill. The section relating to wages and salary reductions in the Civil Service was completed shortly after 2 a.m. and the second part of the Bill, which deals with pensions, was under discussion when the House adjourned for breakfast. The Leader of the Opposition (Mr H. E. Holland) moved an amendment to the. hardship clause attached to the first, section of the Bill. He said the clause as 11 stood was nebulous, because it simply said the regulations might, provide 'for the adjustment of anomalies of hardships. He wished to make it mandatory, and his amendment set out that " the regulations shall provide for ihe. adjustment of anomalies and for the relief of cases of hardship."

The Prime Minister, Mr G. W. Forbes, said there were hound to he. a number of anomalies, but Ihe clause would give the Governor-General every authority, so there was no need for the amendment. The amendment was defeated by 16 votes to 26, and the clause passed on the voices.

A division was taken on the clause which provides for the provisions of the Bill to apply lo the Cook Islands and Samoa. The clause was retained bv 7 5 votes to 26.

The Leader of the Opposition appealed to the Prime Minister regarding the clauses relating lo pensions reductions.

Miserable Piece of Legislation. Mr P. Fraser (Labour —Wellington Central) said the proposal to reduce pensions was a miserable piece of legislation and had never been endorsed by the electors. Mr A. M. Samuel (Coalition — Thames) supported Mr Fraser's remarks, and said if the question of reducing pensions were put to the peOpie there would be an overwhelming majority in favour of an increase rather than a reduction. Mr Forbes said it was easy to say that pensions should not be cut, but the Government had to consider the country’s finances. Their pensions bill was growing every year, and unless something were done the whole system would break down.

Mr E. J. Howard (Labour —Christchurch South) said the Labour Party was in favour of pensions being paid in full irrespective of the country’s finances.

Mr H. M. Rushworth (Country Party—Bay of Islands) said he did not think the Prime Minister had exhausted the possible avenues for raising the money required. Mr 11. T. Armstrong (Labour — Christchurch East) said the Prime Minister was doing as he was told. “Like a docile worm he carries out his instructions,” he declared, and when asked to withdraw said he was under the impression he was praising the Prime Minister. Most Defenceless Section. Mr H. Atmore (Independent—Nelson) deprecated the attack on the most defenceless section of the community, and several Labour members added their voices to the protests against the section. At about 4 a.m. Mr J. Hargest (Independent—lnvercargill) entered the debate to say he deprecated the extravagant statements of the Labour members. He would vote against the proposals to reduce pensions, but he apologised for entering the same lobby as the Labour members. Mr Forbes moved the closure at 4.35 a.m. after the Chairman had announced that four amendments had been handed in. Labour divided the House on the closure, which was applied by 39 votes to 29, and another division immediately followed on the amendment to omit the sub-clause which provides for a reduction of the old age pensions by Is 9d per week. The amendment was rejected by 36 votes to 34, the announcement of the figures being the signal for an outburst of applause from the Labour benches. The following was the division list: — For Amendment (34). Armstrong McCombs Atmore McKeen Barnard Mason Black Munro Carr J. A. Nash Chapman W. Nash Coleman O’Brien Connolly Parry Fraser \ Richards Hargest ' Rushworth Harris Samuel It. E. Holland Schramm Howard Semple Jones Stallworthy Jordan Sullivan Langstone Sykes Lee Wright Against Amendment (36). Ansell H. Holland Bitchener Jull Bodkin Kyle Broadfoct Linklater Burnett Lye Campbell McDougall Clinkard McLeod Coates McSkhnming Cobbe MacMillan De La Perrello Makitanara Dickie Ngata Endean Poison Field , Ransom Forbes Reid Hamilton Stuart Hawke Te Tomo Healy Williams llenare Young Pairs. For the Amendment: Messrs Savage and Wilkinson. Against the Amendment: Messrs Murdoch and Stewart. Divisions were taken on two other amendments to the old ago pensions clause. The sub-clause limiting the amount of income that might he earned by a pensioner and his wife was retained by 43 votes to 29, and a sub-clause relating to the computation of pensions in cases where the applicants are in receipt of war pensions was retained by 40 votes to 31 The whole clause was then adopted by 38 votes to 34. The clause reducing widows’ pensions was then discussed, closure being applied at 7.40 a.m. by 43 votes to 26. An amendment moved by Mr W. F. Barnard (Labour —Napier) to delete the sub-clause reducing pensions from 10s to 9s per week In respect of each child was defeated by 39 votes to 29. The sub-clause relating to income of widows was retained by 39 votes to 29, and the whole clause was adopted by 39 votes to 30. The House adjourned at 8.10 a.m. till 9.30 a.m.