PARLIAMENT.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 978, 19 November 1910, Page 7

PARLIAMENT.

THE COUNCIL. TAlEfll LAND DRAINAGE. ; When, tho Legislative Council met at (2.30. yesterday afternoon, • the Taieri lLand Drainage Bill was taken in Comanittee. ■ ! Tho ATTORNEY-GENERAL said tho (Bill had'been very carefully considered Iby tho .Public • Petitions * Committee, hvho thought the Bill should proceed, rwith oortain modifications, to give tho (board discretion of classification for rating purposes. He had considered all (that could bo put forward by tho opiponents of the Bill, and could seo no |way of conceding tho demands made. >Ho'intimated that bo' would resist to ithe . utmost- any attempt to the (Bill, except in regard to tho modification., ha.'had.- indicated. Tho Bill as it tetood, would work out properly' and /well.-. ' I Tho Hon. Sir GEO. M'LEAN (Otago) (strongly o])posed tho Bill. It was a •protty -state of things, ho said, to (make, a party question out of such a matter as this. Tho Hon. J. E. JENKINSON (Wellington) said the matter had not, been jmade:a party question. Every efior lhad been made to effect a compromise, i Tho ATTORNEY-GENERAL said a 'genuine effort had been made to meet •too difficulties. ' . ! In Committee, tho amendment indicated iby. the Attorney-General was acioepted, and the Bill was reported, and 'then, nut through its final stages, ana ipasscu. EDUCATION RESERVES. . On tho motion to go into Committee; .on. the Education Reserves Amendment; ;Bill, i several speakers;. urged . ' that in view of the opposition which had been raised, against the.measure, particularly, in the south,- it should, bo held over until next session. Tho people of Otago, it was stated, had held a mass meeting to protest against the Bill, and other -protests' had also' been mado there: . ' . Tho ATTORNEY-GENERAL said ho thought the Bill resembled tho curates' egg. It was good in parts, and r bad in parts. .'At the same time,-there was a great deal of good in tho Bill. There ■had- certainly been something lacking when'it was first'introduced,' but this' was'remedied by amendments,,; he was putting forward, and ho thought the amendments would meet all objections. The Bill transferred,the management of rthe reserves tho School. Commissioners' to'tho Land Boards. Tho former - hadi . exercised their duty carefully, ,_but ho did not think'it . could bo' desired that the. Land Boards had special' qualificat-iohs which-enabled them to ! deal .wit-ii -tho matter. He could • see no objection .to transferring the iunds-Jo the Public Trustee. In his opinion, the new clauso would meet tho criticism of the people of Otago; 'He thought tho Bill .should pass this session, and in its final shape ho did not "think it.would be open to any objection. In Committee tho ATTORNEY-GEN-ERAL moved to strike out of clause two the paragraph reading: "That all assets'ana'liabilities of any school commissioners shall heconio . assets ■ and liabilities of the Crown." Dr. Findlay said that the abolition of the school commissioners, if the' Bill-were carried, involved, the; retirement of certain officers' who had served, tho country with fidelity and skill. It was recognised :by the Government that they should as, far. as '/they., could assist .these officers to get suitable, occupations, so '.that ithey would not suffer any hardship.; The Hon. J. R. SINCLAIR (Otago) IsaitLlievdid not think getting other si'tii-' ationtrwould meet'-th'e fcas'o''of.i'all"th6so'co'nce'rffed. " OnV'of the. persons 'con-' cerneti.in Dunedin had served for. eigliiteeil years,, ahc£ another for twenty-eight year5.......1t-.'.was, t'^Jate,. in.life ..to try to provido for these Tnen by giving them other.positions. .Some provision might, he thought, "bo made in tho shape of either a lump sum or-an annuity. ; Tlic .ATTORNEY-GENERAL said tho. ■wholo matter was one for tho Government; to go': into: . The'proposal to deleto tho words in ; Vhe-' paragraph -in question was agreed ito. '' . ■ i" motion of the Attorney-Gen-cral. tho followinjg new clauso was adopted: \ ■ . - ■' , "All funds-vested in- any school comtaissionecs at. the commencement of this lAct- and' all mortgages and "other in-' fvestments' representing tho same,-- are Jhereßy vested in the Public Trustee, (who shall hold and administer tho samo ion the same trusts, on which they were ■held an<l administered by . tho school commissioners. . I "The.revenues derived from any such fund'. .or. the . investments thereof shall Kafter deducting, such sum for the administration of. that fund as is proscribed) from , time to time" be paid by ftho Public Trustee into the/ separate account •for the, appropriate district as '•mentioned in the last' preceding section; sand shall be dealt' with by the Blinisiter of Finance in.pursuance of that section 'and/in Mcordarace with tho trusts laffccting-'the-said revenues-.' j' "Save; as ..mentioned in this section,, all assets and liabilities, of any, school 'commissioners shall become assets "and liabilities of tho Crown." | The Attorney-General movSl to"p'osf-' ipone consideration of tho. leasing clauso, [so as to enable him to confer with the--{Prima Minister, .in the. matter of. pro(posed'■amendments. .. i dealing with certain lands in [Wyndham, was deleted, the Attorneytaeneral remarking that it was quito Sneffective.

I Progress'was reported,.'and tho Counfcil; adjourned at 4.35 p.m. until Tucs{ay.- .