PARLIAMENT

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 34, 4 November 1919, Page 8

PARLIAMENT

v — ANOTHER BUSY DAY ON BILLS

* LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL The_ Legislative Council met at 10.30 a.m. The Council received a number of messages from the Home, and then adjourned till 2.30 p.m. - -. ii UNDESIRABLE IMMIGRANTS BILL. PROPOSED AMENDMENTS DEFEATED. SIR FRANCIS BELL moved the second reading of tho Undesirable Immigrants Exclusion Bill. Tho Leader of the Council said that the powers conferred by the Bill had bcon in existence for about four years. Thev had been exercised in tie caso of very few individuals indeed, and so far as his information and his judgment went they bar] not been exercised without sufficient reason in nny case. There wero eases where the reasons had appeared sufficient to the police, but had not appeared to the Attorney-General to be sufficient to entitle him to exercise the very arbitrary authority conferred upon him. The Hon. .T. T. PAUL said that the Question of who was undesirable was one of opinion, and would be differently answered by different Attorney-Generals. He did not favour placing in tho hands of ono man tho powers that tho Bill proposed to confer. Ho was no apologist for what was really undesirable so far ns future immigration was concerned. Ha agreed that the actual power to prohibit undesirable immigrants was a right one, but he feared that some day the polltical bias of nn Attorney-General niight determine the views of that officer ns to whether a man should bo excluded. He proposed to move at a Inter stage that tho following should be nn additional clause of the Bill:— "That a return showing in detail the number of such orders issued, and tho name, nationality, and the reason for the exclusion or deportation of every person excluded or deported shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament' within fourteen days of the commencement of eneh session-of Parliament." He could hardly hope to see his amendment carried, 'but he believed it to be in accordance with tho best principles of British liberty. , , The Hon. ,T. B. GOW believed that certain restraints wero pecessary to prevent liberti) from degenerating into license. He supported the Bill. ' ' ~ The Hon. W. 11. TRIGGS said that if the war had taught us anything it had taught ns the dangers of allowing unrestricted admission to men whose object was to creato disaffection to weaken tho country's powers of resistance. It would bo folly to go back to the laxity that existed before thd war. The Hon. O. SAMUEL regretted that 'it was necessarv to establish in New Zealand such a system of supervision ns that contemplated by the Bill. It was a pity that the conditions to-day required such a drastic remedy. Ho believed that there were far more objections to than reasons in favour of the Hon. Mr. Paul's proposed amendment. SIR WALTER BUCHANAN said that not orilv bed the. Bill his hearty support but if its-provisions had .beer, mnro drastic than they were, he would : still have supported it. Ho would go so far as to support a Bill that would prevent, except in very exceptional circumstances, the advent of another, German or another Austrian to the Dominion of Njw Zealand. It had been well said by another hon. gentleman that it was our duty to protect tho liberties that had descended' to us from previous gen-orntions-that we should protect our institutions in every reasonable, way. Had Germans or Austrians any claim upon us to allow their entrance into this Dominion? What evil would bofall ns if we s.iid: Henceforth no individual from either of- lho«e nationalities shall enter this Dominion? Could not wo obtain from our own race, and country tho immigrants we desked to increase tho population of our land? It would surely bo much more desirable to have such immigrants than persons like those whose preserce had prevented America from declaring war until it war. almost too late. The Hon. W. EARNSHAAV agreed with other hon. gentlemen who favoured tho Bill The Bill was read a second time. Tn committee on the Bill, The Hon. J. T Paul moved nn amendment to make the Bill expire, on Januarv 1. 1921. unless it should then be further continued by decision of Parliament. , ~ The amendment was lost upon tno Mr" Paul also moved the additional clause, of which he barf given notice in the second reading debate. This amendment was also dofeated on the voices, and the Bill was renwtert without' alteration, read a third time, and pnssed. , The. Council rose nt 4.40, antf resumed nt S P.m. NATIVE "WASHING-UP" BILL. The Native "Washing-Up" Bill (received from the House) was put through all stages, and passed with minor amendments. DISCHARGED SOLDIERS' SETTLEMENT, The Council agreed, as tho House hod done, to amendments introduced by Governor-General's Message into tho Discharged Soldiers' Settlement Amendment Bill. RAILWAYS AUTHORISATION. Amendments introduced by GovernorGeneral's Message into tho Railways Authorisation Bill were agreed to. HAWKE'S BAY RIVERS BILL. The House requested a conference upon the amendments mado by tho Council in in the Hawke's Bay Rivers Bill. Tho Council agreed to the request, and appointed as its managers the Hons. J. I!. Gow, E. W. Alison, and W. Larnshaw. , _. Huring the evening session, the Hon. Mr. Gow moved that the Council should not insist on its ameiidmenia. _ Tho motion was carried. SHEARERS' ACCOMMODATION. The Lower Houso advised tho Council that it disagreed with amendments mado in the Shearers' Accommodation Bill. SIR FRANCIS BELL moved that the Council insist on its amendments, and appoint the mover, Sir V ..Iter Buchanan, and the Hon. J. Fisher as its managers lo conduct a conference. The'motion was carried. The managers drew up tho following statement of reasons:-(!) That unlets Die ameiulmont in clause 1 is made, the Act will come into force immediately; (2) the excision of sub-clause 2 of clause 9 is considered necessary. (Sub-clause 2 of clause !) provided that it should be' competent for a sheep-owner to deduct from wages an amount to make good any damage wilfully ov negligently done by il shearer to the premises used for his accommodation.) The managers reported that the conference had agreed :-(l) That the Act should come into operation on June »0, 1920 (instead of on January 1, 1920); and (2) that in lieu of sub-clause 2 of clause . 9 a provision should bo inserted making the compensation to be paid to an owner dependent upon the order of a magistrate. DIVORCE BILL. A message was received from the House requesting the concurrence of the Council in amendments made in the Divorce and Mntnuinnial Cause:! Bill. STI? PRANCrS BRLL said that he was agreeable to having the- amendments made, but he desired that they should lw put in another form. He therefore nr.ved that the Council disagree with lliem, and appoint managW?. The motion was "arriod, nnd the mover and the Hons. O. Samuel and J. JlacGregnv wore appointed managers to confer with managers representing the House. <5 BILLS. The following Bills from the House were passed I 'without amendment: Prisons Amendment Bill and Police Force Amendment Bill.

The Council rose at. 10.10 p.m., and adjourned till 10.30 a.m. to-day.