THE HOUSE.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1871, 3 October 1913, Page 4

THE HOUSE.

The House of Representatives met at 2.80 p.m. . THE PETITIONS !I COIVIiviITTEE. i v :* ■ 'AFTERNOON SITTING} OPPOSED. Mr. J. H. ■BRADNEY (Auckland. iWest) askod'that .the A to L Petitions Committee" should bo permitted to sit .that?afternoon. .. SIR JOSEPH WARD said that he was not going jto object, but in the past It had not".been usual for committees to sit in the 'afternoon, excopt during Jtlie last fortnight of the gession, unless in extraordinary Cases. The PRIME -MINISTER'said that the committee had before it a very important petition from Waihi. Two medical men from one plaoe had come down as iwitndssos, and their.patients were greatly inconvenienced by .their absence. Ho agreod with the opinion expressed' by /the Leader of the Opposition, and was I'usfc ns strongly opposed as that memior to conimittoes. sitting in tho afteriioon■ save under .exceptional circumstances. In the present case tho circumstances ..wore exceptional. Mr; RUSSELL pointed out that Mr. Bradney wa3 chairman of both tho A to L and Labour Bills _ Committees, and suggested that a mistake had been made; in appointing one member chairman of those two committees, because naturally he.wished to attend tho sittings of both. Tho time for lvliioh cncli committeo could sit was thus curtailed. Incidentally 'Mr. Russell. asked tho Prime Minister whether ho seriously -in- ' tended, to placo the; Industrial Conciliation' and 'Arbitration Bill on the Statute Book this session. , , Tljo Arbitration Bill. The. Prima Minister: I,intend to asli

Parliament to place the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Bill on the Statute Book during tho present session. Mr. Russell was proceeding' to ask whether the labour unions would have an of tendering evidence,, but Was called to order. Finally he suggested that Mr. Bradnoy should seek release from the chairmanship of one or other of the two committees over which he now presides. Mr. MASSEY said that Mr, Davey ha'd on some occasions: acted as chairman of the Labour' Bills (Committee, but he and other members were now away in Christchprch. The Labour. Bills Committee would meet on the following day to make preliminary arrangements for its investigation in connection with tho Arbitration Bill. The Hon. F. M. B. FISHER said that if the A to L Petitions Committee had not sought permission to sit in the afternoon to conduct the Waihi inquiry other business > would have been held up. One witness had been examined for an hour and a half that morning by one member of the committee. Mr. BRADNEY said that he did not approvo of a committee sitting in the afternoon, but had given way to the unanimous wish of the committee/ As to what the member for Avon had 'said there had been no overlapping between the Labour Bills and A to L Petitions Committees. He had never been absent from one 'committee to attend ■hnotherj but had been absent on other business. On .such (occasions he had left a competent chairman in the chair. SHOPS AND OFFICES BILL. A RUMOUR DENIED. Jlr. tl. ATMORE (Nelson) said that there.was a rumour about to the effect that the Government intended to drop the Shops, and, Offices Bill. When he was asked, this question he gave, it _ a denial, and he thought it'would give satisfaction' in certain 'quarters if. the Prime Minister would state publicly that the Government had no intention of dropping this Bill. The PRIME MINISTER;, said that the hon. gentleman was quite right in denying the rumour, for the Government had no intention of dropping the Shops Bill. Hei,hppetl;that the Labour . Bills Committee would be i able to get on with the clauses of the Bill within the next few days. 'Ho nad, however, . somO ' .very -important amendments to move. He could assure h'on. members that the ' House would have an opportunity of dealing with the Bill during the present session. THE HOP MARKET. 1 Mr. H. ATMORE (Nelson) asked the Prime Minister :whether !ho would take steps to have regular returns published in the New Zealand .papers as to the" state, of f;h© hop market ,in London. 11l the absence of this Information hopgrowers.in Nelson were in the hands of the merchants to whom they sold tjioir crops.'' V The PRIME MINISTER said that he gave instructions' to the Agricultural Department some time ago that information as to the selling price of, hops in. London should bo supplied to New Zealand papers. He had understood that the .information was being supplied, audi njas sorry to h'ear that it had not. Ho would again instruct the Department, and see that the 'desired •information was,supplied.