THE LICENSING BILL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 973, 14 November 1910, Page 4

THE LICENSING BILL.

SOME ANOMALIES.

INTERESTING OPINIONS.

There are some anomalies in the Licen« sing Bill as it has passed the House ol Eepresentativcs. If the Bill stands as at present, the number of breweries in Auckland and Wellington cannot be increased. This will be due to the fact that under the clause providing that no new breweries can be established within five miles of a no-license district, no new breweries, it is stated, can be started in Wellington or Auckland. Then, again, there is provision for national restoration coming into operation three months after the date of the election. The same amendment, of course, should be made in regard to local restoration. According to the Bill as it now stands, the determination of the electors for local restoration is to come into force on the day of the general election at which the poll is taken. This is an absurdity, because the declaration will not be made till ten days afterwards. . SUMMARY OF THE MEASURE. The Bill provides for a ballot on the question of national or Dominion option, which can only be carried on a. threefifths majority. The provisions in regard to local option are on the three-fifths' basis as at present. . The reduction issue is done away with. Should national prohibition be carried, it will not take effect till four years after the date of the poll. If local prohibition is carried it will come into force at the end of the licensing year following the date of the poll. Should licenses be restored in a district they will be in the ratio of not more than one to every 500 electors, and not less than one for every 1000 electors. Should national prohibition be carried, the only UqUor admissible in tbo Dominion will be for medicinal, industrial, scientific, or sacramental purposes. _ • Barmaids will eventually cease to exist, in New Zealand if the Bill becomes law-, but those now engaged will be permitted to continue their occupation. They must be licensed. , Brewers' depots must not be established within five miles of a no-license district. This provision.i 9 not extended to bottling warehouses established prior to the carrying of No ; license. ' -iA- ■ The King Country remains a prohibition area, but Europeans will have the. right to vote on the question _ ot. i»o----minion option. Maoris are given the right to take a local option poll within any Maori Council district. . The poll will be decided on a bare majority, and if prohibition is carried, heavy penalties will be imposed on any person ttho supplies liquor to Natives in the district.

MR. A. M. MYERS'S VIETV. ; Asked for his view on .the Licensing Bill, Mr. A. M. Mvcrs (member for Auckland East) said that as the Bill made, further concessions to the prohibitionists than those containod in what was known, as tho "compact," he could ' hardly express entire satisfaction with it. Two aspects, however, of the Bill commended themselves to him. In the first place, there was the elimination of the reduction issue. Having regard to the large increase in population, and the number of licenses already cancelled, the injustice of the present law on this subject was generally recognised, not only by moderate thinking people, but by a large majority of those who held extreme views. Then, continued Mr. Myors, the retention of the three-fifths majority for the decision of any issue is, in my . opinion, looking at it from an impartial standpoint, a wise provision. For many reasons it is desirable that a substantial majority should be required to 'decide any question materially affecting, the habits and customs of the people, and, on the other hand, it ensures stability. It is certainly a great step forward for the prohibitionists to have succeeded in placing the far-reaching issue of national prohibition on tho Statute-book. The alteration that has been made in tho Bill as." originally drawn by providing' that. the issues shall bo placed before the electors on two ballot-papers is also a great concession to the prohibitionists, and the majority of the other clauses are what they have been clamouring for for some years, so they should be satisfactory to those of their way of thinking. I am very much inclined to think, and view it with satisfaction, that this Bill will' have the effect of removing the licensing question to some extent from the political arena. It is unlikely that any further licensing legislation will be attempted for some years.. The. only question that can now be placed before a candidate is whether he believes ■ in' the simple or three-fifths majority.

STATEMENT BY. EEV. J. DAWSON. The Rev. John Dawson, secretary of the' Neiv Zealand Alliance, on being asked for his view, stated that the party was universally disappointed at the retention of the present three-fifths majority. "Wo shall not cease from to-day," he said; "to agitate for the bare majority. In fact, we shall be more vigorous than ever. We feel acutely the injury the people suffer in having to snbmit to the three-fifths majority. We ate pleased, however, to learn from members of the House that if they had not been bound by election pledges they would have reduced the majority this time." "The separation- of tho issues," continued Mr. Dawson, "has given us very great satisfaction. Without this the Bill would not have been acceptable to us at all. We are also glad to note that some of the provisions of the ' Bill will do away with evils and abuses now exist, .ing, such as the locker system, the bottle lioense, the beer depot, and the barmaid. In the interests of women themselves we are sorry the Bill did not go the whole length"in the abolition of barmaids. It is a calling in which no young woman, should be allowed to serve. We are satisfied, too, that the. term of license after local No-License has been carried has been kept as it is, so that the No-License voter can see tho fruit of his labours the first of July following the election." "But I wish to emphasise this fact," said Mr. Dawson. "This Bill does not bring us to our goal. We wish Parliament and the country to realise that nothing short of justice to electors on the majority question will satisfy us."

During consideration of the Licensing Bill on Friday night, Mr. F. M. B. .Fisher drew tie attention of the Prime Minister to the fact that during the recent by-election contest for the Auckland East seat,, the hotels on one side of Queen Street (which wero in the Auckland Bast electorate) were closed, and the hotels on the other side (which were outside the elecorate) were open.. The Prime Minister promised to look into the point.