QUESTIONS DURING THE SESSION.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17115, 9 April 1921, Page 10

QUESTIONS DURING THE SESSION.

.MINISTERIAL -REPLIES. Ministers' answers to some questions asked in the House of Representatives during the recent session have been issued.-. Many of the replies, ,as usual, are indefinite, and some of the information given'has already been published in other forms. Mr. Massey.has, arranged to continue the subsidy to -widows. The Treasury is preparing a reportthe. position of* superannuated civil servants. ' A Main Roads Sill .--vill be drafted shortly, arid local bodies, will be allowed two or three months- in which to consider it and make suggestions before it reaches. Parliament. Mr G. Witty asked the Government whether they would impose a special tax on all foreigners who resided in New Zealand and vAwi were not naturalised as British subjects. (Note^—France charges £4 per'head per annum on all. foreigners living in France.) The Hon. W. Dowuie Stewart (Minister of Internal Affairs) has replied as follows: Presumably the object of the French tax is.to secure ie\enue from Die large number'of foreign residents, but it is probable that the number pf unnaturalised foreigners resident in New Zealand is not sufficient to yield any substantial revenue, and it is therefore not proposed, meanwhile, to impose aueh a tax. \ Mr W. E Parry asked the Minister of Customs whether j in view of tho continued influx of Asiatics into the Dominion, he- would .vake steps to amend t'he Immigration Restriction Acs .so as to provide that, in future the education test for Asiatics bo < used on the dixtb. standard certificate of the New Zealand schools. He stated that two Chinese factories for tho manufacture of furniture were at present operating in Auckland, tho existence of whiflh, under present conditions, threatened the living standard of European workers. The Hon. W. Downie Stewart (Minister of Customs) replied as follows :■ Under the Immigration Restriction Act, 1920, Asiatics are not allowed to land in INew Zealand except in pursuance of a permit issued by the Minister of Customs There is no need to, fear any influx of raiese races while the legislation now on the Statute Book remains in force. Asiatics who were en route, to the Dominion when the present restrictions took effect have been permitted to land under the old conditions