NICE DAY NEEDED FOR ELECTIONS

Chronicle (Levin), 9 October 1946, Page 3

NICE DAY NEEDED FOR ELECTIONS

-Press Association

AND WORKERS WANT SATURDAY TO THEMSELVES

By Telegraph-

WELLLNGTOJN, Oet. S. Hon. W. E. Parry, moving tlie committal of tlie Local Elections and Polls Amendment Bill in the House, said the measure set out to make sixteen minor changes ineluding the alteration of polling day from Saturday to Wednesday. fhis change was necessitated because of the altered conditions of today. Mr. M. H. Oram: What are the conditions? Mrs. Howard: The forty hour week. Mr. Parry said Saturday was no longer a working day and the working man wanted that day to himself. Mr. A. S. Sutherland: What about those who produce food? Mr. Parry said the change meant one day in three years. The Bill stood for the rights of the people. He had received many eomplaints from people who sought a change in the polling day so that they need not come out in the wet coid weather of May. The reason why November was chosen was because it had the best weather of the whole year and gave better facilities and greater conveniencest for voters. The Bill stood for the deinocratic rights of citizens and would give them decent weather. (Laughter). Mr. Parry said local bodies had no great objeetion to any part of the Bill except that whicli provided for the use of the Parliamentary roll. He was convinced the innovation was worth a trial. Mr. E. W. Doidge: Is it not possible if the Parliamentary roll is used, that a man may vote in two or three borouglis ? Mr. Parry said that the committee had made an amendment which guarded against tliat. Mr. W. J. Polson said the House had rarely listened to sueh inaccuracies and misstatements as those contained in the speech by the Minister. There really had been no evidence in i'avour of tiie Bill before the Local Government Committee. Both the Municipal Association and Counties Association had opposed nearly all its operative provisions. In the case of another Bill, the Minister said that because some of the local bodies opposed certain provisions, changes must be made but in "the present case he disregarded the local bodies entirely. The Local Government Committee had been unable to recommend any changes in the date of elections.

Mr. Polson said that for the Bill to remove an oecupier's right to vote was a very great mistake. Neither shearers nor owners could spare the time to vote in most districts in November if it was a iine day. Mr. E. P. Meachen: What about a race meeting? Mr. Polson said it would be most diflieult to conduct local body elections on the Parliamentary roll because of the extraordinary interlocking between bouudaries of districts and counties ridings. He did not oppose the praetice of entitling .as many persons. to vote as possible but he did oppose the abolition of the oecupier's vote. Mr. R. M. Macfarlane (Christchurch South) said there was 110 eompulsion for a local authority to use the Parliamentary roll. The Bill merely set out that this roll could be used in the compilation of the local bodies roll, while the use of declaration votes on which there was a cheek, was extended. Mr. S. W. Srnitli (Bay of Islands) said the Bill was opposed by the. Counties' Association, Municipal Association, Harbour Boards' Association, County Clerlcs' Association and Federated Farmers. In the Local Bills Committee he had asked the Minister of Internal Affairs to withdraw the Bill and he thought if the Minister had had his own way he would have done so. The Bill was something foisted on to the people by the Labour caucus as the result of pressure by some outside organisation. Mr. W. Sullivan (Bay of Plenty) said that possibly the aim of the Government was to link up some day the local body election with the Parliamentary election. He did not know of one local body that had asked for this legislation. The local bodies in his electorate opposed the Bill lock, stock and barrel. The discussion was continued until 11.45 p.m. when a division was called for on the committal of the Bill, which was agreed to by 40 votes to 29, whereupon the House went into Committee I on this Bill and on the Local Governj ment Commission Bill. After tliese two Bills had been passed and four new Bills inlrodueed, the House rose at 12.20 a.m.