POLITICAL NOTES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 270, 9 August 1920, Page 4

POLITICAL NOTES

MORE GOVERNMENT BILLS TWO TO BE INTRODUCED TO-MORROW Tho Prime Minister stated on Friday that two more of the Government's Dills would be introduced on Tuesday. Tho Order Paper contains at present nino Government Bills, including the Gaming Bill ((waiting consideration of tho Legislative Council's amendments), the Massours Registration Bill (shorn of its more drastic clauses), the Civil List Bill, and the Standard Timo Bill. The Civil List Bill proposes tho increase of members' naiades, and the Standard Time Bill j aims at the advancing of the clock by hnlf-an-hour. Many important Government Bills have'still to reach tho House, PRICES ANff PROFITS The House of Representatives sat until 1.50 a.m. on Saturday. After midnight it discussed the work of the anti-profiteer-ing tribunals, on the vote for the Department of Industries and Commerce. Many members suggested that the tribunals ought to be more severe in their dealings with traders, but tho debate did not produce suggestions likely to be of much use to the Minister, and Mr. Lee took the opportunity to deprecate earning criticism. He believed that the tribunals were doing a great deal of useful work, and that they had succeeded in reducing some prices and checking rising prices. Mr. Fraser (Wellington Central) moved n reduction of <£1 in tho vote aa "a protest against the failure of the tribunals to deal with profiteering." This amendment was defeated by 34 votes to S. The discussion indicated that the • amendment was not treated by the House as a test of opinion. PUBLIC DEBHXTINCTION

The Auditor-General, in a report t» Parliament, crates that the amount of the Public Debt of New Zealand us defined in section 2 of the Public Debt Extinction Act, 1910, was i1M,121,598 on March 31 last. The definition covers all public debt for which sinking fund is not provided in any other way. Tlio average rate of interest earned sinking funds during the last three years was M lfe. Gd. per annum, and the 6ura required to be invested at this rate in order to extinguish the debt in 75 years U .£112,295.

TOURIST DEPARTMENT

LOSSES ON BJSSORTS. The direct revenue of the Tourist Department during the last financial year was the highest in tho history of ttio Department—cC42,2lß, an increase of over .A' 8529 over the total for tho preceding year. ■ The Goneral Manager of the Department considors that.this advance may fairly bo taken as marking a growth' in popularity of the Dominion's sceuio resorts as tlioy become better known in Australia, America, and Europe. He looks forward with confidence to a. considerable advance during the present season. Tho expenditure on tourist rcsorta during the year was -£68,853, an advance of over JSIa.OCO on tho preceding year. The increase' was due" chiefly to the increased cost of supplies and the additions to salaries of officers. The tourist resorts nearly all show excess of expenditure'.' over receipts. The accounts show. a loss of- .E7i9o on Kotorua, ,£2779 on Hannior Springs,, .£1483 on Te ArcJia, £6(3 on the southern lake resorts, and JC44S on Qucenstown. Tho only resort that showed a sutetaSitkl profit was the Waitomo Caves, with a credit of -£2813. No allowance is made in these figures for interest on (capital expenditure or for depreciation of plant ■and buildings. La6t year the Department booked passages'by coach, steamer, and railway to the amount of ..«3,3G9. This is a service that is appreciated by an increasingly large number of people.'