EXTRA PAYMENTS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1272, 30 October 1911, Page 4

EXTRA PAYMENTS.

A PROTEST, WARM TIME IN THE HOUSE. A rather stormy discussion axosp in the House of Representatives between ono and two o'clock on Saturday morning. Tho llouso was ill Committee of Supply on the Supplementary Estimates, and had readied a vote of JJISS for Messrs. litallv.orthy and Heed, in remuneration oi services upon the North Auckland Hailnay Commission. .Neither of thiso nieiiilxTs was present. Mr. Massey raided objection to tho vole. lie slated that iie had teld tho members concerned iast year, when a .similar vote was brought down, that ho did not like llus sort ol thiiifi, and would vote against any item ot t tic kind oil subsequent occasions, lie considered that there were far tou many of thcoo payments to members of Uio Ilousc. Mr. iins.-ey moved l.hnt the voto of £11)5 shotuu be struck uut. the t'rime Minister stated that this item had been put down linen use tho members mentioned had bocu selected on account ot' ilieir knowledge. Tn debar men so quahhed from being selected lor services of tne kind would be contrary to tne practice ol nearly every country iu the wor.d. it was bmy in .Now Zealand that euorts wore made iu this way to depreciate members ot Parliament. .Uesii's. Scott, Antiunion, and Nosworthy supi>orted tiie an.eudment. Sir Joseph Ward pouvteu out that members oi the Opposition, including Sir William Hussell, had been on lioyal Commissions, and had been paid. Sir Charles liowen hnd also served on a Koyal Commission, and received remuneration. Such payments did not tak« away tho independence of members. An altercation took place between Mr, Massey and Mr. E. 11. Taylor (Thames), and it transpired that Sir. Taylor ia chairman of a drainage board, and receives, in common with the other members, a guinea for expenses in connection with the monthly meetings of the board in Auckland. It appealed that tho money is paid by the Crown. Mr. L. M. lsitt protested against what he called the unworthy statement of the Leader of tho Opposition. ilr. Massey said lie understood the last speaker to bo a Christian minister. Mr. lsitt said he hnd not had any remuneration as a minister for twenty years. Mr. Massey: On account of the Christian Church, I am very glad to hear the lion, gentleman say so. Mr; Massey said tho principle was tho same whatever tho amor.nt of money in question. Mo member of Parliament should receive a single shilling from tho State abovo his salary. Any addi- . tional payment was an interference with his independence, and should not bo tolerated. Mr. Hcrrics said it was a violation of a, constitutional principle to pay members of Parliament anything outsido their salaries. Anyone who read English history would find that there was a great deal of that sort of thing during one period, and there wero then many men iu tho House of Commons who were called "placemen," and received pay from tho Treasury. It was found that a remedy was necessary, and now when a member ' acoepted any oiliec paid by the Crown > lie must offer himself to his constituents I for re-election. Tho two members who " had served on the North Auckland Kail- > way Commission were held in esteem by 1 the House, and lie did'not suppose that * they would be influenced by this vote, " but it was a question of principle, and 1 a great principle. It was tho samo with ! Judges; they ought not to bo put on " lioyal Commissions. 3 Mr. IXanan defended the employment of r members of Parliament on lioyal Commissions. They brought into the Houso 5 the valuable knowledge which they thug j obtained, and if they did not do their duty they could bo called to account in tho House. Mr. lsitt asked whether tho Leader " of the Opposition drew his travelling expenses iu coming and going from \Vel- " lngton. * Mr. Massey said lie represented twelve * or fourteen thousand people. He drew his honorarium of a year and spent j i'SOl). Ho drew travelling expenses on t ono journey cither way to and from Wellington. But the employment of members 5 on Commissions was another thing j altogether. [ The amendment was negatived by 33 j votes to 15. i Following is the division list:—

Ayes (15): Anderson, ]?isbcr, Guthrie, Herdman, Hemes, lline, Luke, M'Laren, Massoy, Newman, Nosworthy, Okey, Rhodes, Scott, Wright. Notes (3G): Buddo, Carroll,' Clark, Craigie, Davey, Dillon, J. Duncan, 1511, Field, Fowlds, Glover, Graham, Greenslade, Hall, Hnnaii, Hogan, Isilt, Laurenson, La wry, Macdonald, R. M'Kenzie, T. Mackenzie, Millar, Jlvci-s, Ngata, Parata, Poland, Poole, Rangihiroa, Boss, Seddon, Sidey, Smith, Steward, Taylor, Ward.