THE SESSION.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1559, 1 October 1912, Page 4

THE SESSION.

Members are already beginning to talk of the end of the session, and the' Prime Minister, in response to inquiries, has intimated that he hopes to close down before the end of the present month. In the exceptional circumstances which have prevailed during .the currcnt session, the House of Representatives has acquitted itself very well in the amount of business it has got through. Members were naturally somewhat _ demoralised by the cxciting happenings of the early days of thc session which ended in a change of Government, and the .new Ministry itself was placed at a serious disadvantage by having to enter on its duties while the House was in session. It was given very little time in which to arrange its legislative programme, and it lias had to carry on the work of Parliament while at the same time making itself e-cquainted with, and attending to, matters associated with . the administration of the varioua

Departments of State. In view of these things, it is greatly to the credit of the Government that it has been able to bring furWilvd so mauy of its policy proposals and to make such progress with them. No doubt it has been materially assisted by the disorganised state of the Opposition. The anti-Reform party has been of little help to the Government in the role of critics desirous of improving the measures brought before Parliament for consideration, but on tho other hand it has not been in the mood to offer any effective opposition to the proposals submitted. Indeed, on occasions members of the Opposition have shown a tendency to shirk their obligations and to absent themselves when they should have been in their places in the House attending to the business of the country. The programme outlined by Mn. Massey for the balance of the session is not an unduly heavy one if members continue to work as they have been doing. The Land Bill may take a little time; the Defence Bill is certain to provoke debate; and also the'Legislative Council Amendment Bill and the Valuation Bill; but a fortnight should prove more than enough tune in which to dispose of these, which would leave another two weeks for tho cleaning up of other matters. ,The early closing down of Parliament on the present occasion will not only prove very welcome to members, but should be a very good thing for the country as well. . It is asking too much of Ministers to expect them to take up the reins of office and pbtain that tnorough mastery of Departmental affairs that is essential to sound administration, while they are compelled to be in daily attendance at tne House preparing the work of tho session ana attending to the multitude of matters, great and small, associated with their duties. By next session, of course,' they will have made themselves fully familiar with the working of their various Departments, and they will then be in a position to attend to both their Parliamentary and their administrative duties with much less strain than is imposed on them under existing conditions.