DOMINION PARLIAMENT

Waikato Times, Volume 113, Issue 18879, 24 February 1933, Page 5

DOMINION PARLIAMENT

THE SALES TAX. SUBSTANTIAL ALTERATIONS. PRINCIPAL CLAUSES OP BILL. WHOLESALERS AND RESALE GOODS WELLINGTON, Thursday. The principal clause of the Sales Tax Bill, as it was passed by the House of Representatives has been substantially altered. By the addition of a phrase to each paragraph of sub-section 1 of clause 11, It is made clear that the tax applies to a wholesaler “for resale by •him.” Another sub-section allows a collector of customs to refund the sales tax paid on any materials used by any person in the manufacture of nontaxable goods. The refunds may be made only “in such cases and under such conditions as may be prescribed.”

TAX EXEMPTIONS. CONTAINERS FOR GOODS. TIMBER AND MEAT. WELLINGTON, Thursday. In the amended schedule of exemptions attached to the Sales Tax Bill, the various containers of goods are grouped as follows: —Bags, bottles, boxes, cases, casks, crates, cylinders, drums, jars; sacks, tins, woolpacks and other containers. These, when empty or when containing non-tax-able goods, ad being ordinary trade containers for packing goods, are free from sales tax. The same containers are exempt from the tax also when they contain taxable goods, provided that in the ordinary course of business they are charged for as an extra and credit allowed for them when they are returned to the seller. In the original schedule, under the heading of timber, fence-rails and fence-posts, including wooden spreaders or droppers, were exempted. This item has been amended in the new schedule to read as follows: —“Split fence-rails and split fence-posts, also wooden spreaders or droppers not exceeding six feet in length.” A further amendment is made in the case of meat. The item in the first list of exemptions compiled was, “meat (including bacon, hams, and poultry), fresh or raw." To this has been added the following words: "Or cooked, but not tinned, potted or similarly packed.”

PAYMENT EXEMPTION. INCREASED PETROL TAX. APPLICATION BY FISHERMEN. (Bv Telegraph.—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Thursday. A question whether the Government had yet reached a decision regarding the application for the exemption of commercial fishermen from the payment of the additional petrol tax was asked in the Housp to-day by Mr A. M. Samuel (Government — Thames). The Minister.of Finance, Mr Coates, said the Government was endeavouring to view- the request as sympathetically as possible. He was not able at the moment to indicate what the decision would be, but it would be made known when the Customs Bill was Introduced to-mcrrow.

UNIFORM SYSTEM. LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS. URGED BY MEMBERS. WELLINGTON, Thursday. Whether a uniform system of voting should be enforced throughout the Dominion cr whether each separate locality should be allowed to retain the right of choosing its own system, was an interesting question debated in the House of Representatives tilts evening during the Committee stages of the Auckland City Empowering Bill. Clause 3 of the bill empowers the Auckland City Council to adopt the method of voting by which a cross Is made opposite the name of each favoured candidate and rejects the system in general use by which names of candidates not approved by the voter are struck out. Mr A. Stuart (Government —ltangitikei) said lie was emphatically opposed to iiie clause. During the recent Hangitikei election petition the Chief Justice had not allowed cross votes and had said in fact that they should be done away with. " The time has come when we should have some uniform system throughout New Zealand,” said Mr Stuart. “ This clause is simply getling away from the problem." “It Is the central system that is wrong,” said Mr 11. S. S. Kyle (Government —Riccarton). “We want to get back to the ward system and avoid these huge numbers of candidates." The clause was carried by 43 voles to IS.

ORDERS-IN-COUNCIL. Mil HOLLAND’S -PROTEST. “ESTABLISHING A DICTATORSHIP." CONCENTRATING POWER. (Times Correspondent.) WELLINGTON. Thursday, gt-ong oxc**i>lion tn the statement if liio prime Minister. Mr l-'orhes, that the Government might hint it necessary jo legislate !>y Order-iu-G<>uneil tn order 1" overcome deliherale obstruction of its policy measures, was taken hy Hu: Leadc- of the (tpposilion. yi r |(. c. Holland when speaking durinc 'lie third reading debate on the Sales Tax Rill in the House of lteprencntaUves early UiU morning, jLContkiuecl in nest column.*

Mr Holland said he wanted to protest that no adequate time had been allowed for consideration of the Bill by parties directly concerned. “The Bill should have gone to a committee so that Interested parties coutrl be heard. The Labour Party sought to delay the progress of the Bill so as to give people directly concerned a chance to understand the Implications of the legislation. While some things had been said about the conduct of the Opposition that should not have been said, the supplementary order paper brought down by the Government was a complete vindication of the altitude taken up by the Opposition. The supplementary order paper fully answered the charges levelled at. Ihe Opposition, particularly those charges made in public print by the Prime Minister. The Minister of Finance, Mr Coates: what do you mean by charges? Mr Holland said charges li«d been made against the Opposition by Mr Forbes, but that he was not in his place in the House most of the time. “ It is unfortunate that the Prime Minister is not in his place in the House now,” added Mr Holland. “ The people of New Zealand are now threatened with deprivation of their rights to gain redress by constitutional moans. That line of action is threatened by a Prime Minister who inis taken a more prominent part in hold-ups in Ibis House in the days of Hie past Ilian any oilier member. The Prime Minister now threatens to establish a dictatorship. He lias threatened to delegate powers of Parliament and to eoncenirale- Hie rights of Government in the hands of an executive. Such a statement is not worthy of a man in a responsible position.”