PARLIAMENT

Evening Star, Issue 22144, 26 September 1935, Page 6

PARLIAMENT

IMPREST SUPPLY £4,954,000 WIDE RANGE OF DISCUSSION CONTROVERSIAL BROADCASTING [Per United Press Association J WELLINGTON, September 25. The House met at 2.30 p.m. _ . Sir A. Young gave notice of his intention to introduce the Hamilton Borough Council Empowering Bill. The Land and Income Tax Annual Bill and the Administration Amendment Bill were read a first time and referred to the Land Committee. Tho House spent the remainder of tho afternoon discussing written answers to questions (which are reported under separate heading). The House resumed at 7.30 p.,m. Urgency was accorded the passing of the Imprest Supply Bill, and the House went into committee of supply. Mr Coates explained that it was intended to take supply for £4,954,000 for two months. Mr Savage said lie wondered why supply was taken for two months while the House was sitting. He proceeded to deal with broadcasting, and said the public had only themselves to blame, for the position that had arisen. Broadcasting was slowly but surely being muzzled. He said there should be absolute freedom of the air and added that one heard often of the of the Press, hut he had not seen it very much yet. . The newspapers appeared to him to have special concern for the vested interests; public interest did not come into the picture. He had hoped that someone starting a newspaper would give tho unvarnished truth, but he was gradually losing hope in that direction. No matter what newspaper they picked up, the same side of tho picture was presented, and he wondered what was going to happen to broadcasting. He was just a little afraid what happened to the newspapers would happen to broadcasting if the House allowed it. He could see no logical reason for preventing anyone who had anything interesting to say from saying it. He knew some members said people did not want to hear speeches, but that was not his opinion.

Mr Savage said the B stations were being crushed. They had helped to build up the services-that had been built up, and had helped to popularise broadcasting. “ The freedom of the Press ” did not exist. The Press expressed the views of those in control, and gave very little publicity to the views of the Opposition, and he wanted to see some alternative means of publicity. If he ever came into control lie would see that that alternative was orovided, and he would encourage the B static 's and broadcasting. He admitted that there must be intelligent control, but he did not think the means of publicity should be muzzled. The Government said controversial matters should not be broadcast, but who was to judge what was controversial ? Public questions were discussed in the columns of the. daily newspapers. Why should they not be discussed over the air? He thought there was a stopping place to the issue of licenses that was governed by coverage, but stations that had been in operation for some_ years should not be forced out of existence.

Mr Yeitch said he thought they were in danger of one party having almost a'monopoly of the privilege of expressing its views over the air during the forthcoming election campaign. _ He made a plea for a change of policy regarding broadcasting, and urged that the widest opportunity of self-expres-sion should be given to young people on the air, and equal opportunity to all political parties to express their views over the air. Mr Parry supported Mr Savage in his charge against the Press and publicity for the views of the Opposition. He referred to Mr Coates’s proposal to pay a married man more than a single man, and asked if that policy was to be carried into the rest of the community. Was it to be expected that a single grocer should sell groceries cheaper than a married grocer? Why was the original policy, of paying a single man the same as a married man for the same work departed from? The single man had his future to consider. That principle, continued Mr Parry, would lead to competition between the single man and the married man, and everybody knew that employers generally would give preference to the single man to the exclusion of the married man. He wished to protest immediately against such a stupid principle. Was 12s a day to be the standard wage on public works? If so. it was not sufficient. It was not a living wage. Mr Parry also dealt with the exclusion of the five-year-old children from the schools. He said it was one of the greatest blunders the Government ever made. The Government’s refusal to encourage kindergartens was also mentioned by Mr Parry, who expressed' the hope that the day was not far distant when kindergarten work would become part and parcel of- the education system. It was-too important a work to be left to charity. Mr Semple urged a greater development of coal carbonisation, Britain had encouraged the industry of obtaining oil from coal, as the sources of supply might be cut off in the event of war, and New Zealand was in exactly the same position. New Zealand industries were becoming more and! more dependent on oil. He produced samples of oil secured from • Orepuki shale deposits, and _ said it was a shame that such deposits should be shut down and not developed. The deposits were held by an oil monopoly, and were shut down to force New Zealand to secure oil from foreign countries. The extraction of power alcohol from waste timbers was another industry that should be encouraged. A ton of sawdust yielded as much, as 40 gallons of power alcohol. There was also an excellent tanning liquid which could be obtained from the Southland beech forests. He urged research to ascertain what New Zealand was capable of producing, and what industries were worth being developed. Mr Semple asked the Prime Minister to give the House an outline of what he had learned of the New Zealand woolpack while in Bradford. He thought there was a great opening for that industry if it received a little assistance from the State. He suggested that the Department of Industrial and Scientific Research should be reorganised, and a trained chemist placed at the head of it.

Mr Langstone also dealt with the policy of the Proas and broadcasting. He said the Press dominated the policy of the Government and the country, and alleged that' nothing could be broadcasted until it had already appeared in the daily Press. The Press was stifling broadcasting in this country. He contended that the Press had a" guaranteed price, and received a bounty from the Government in the shape of telegraph concession rates. Mr Langstone said that as soon as B stations wore allowed to broadcast all matter people would see where the power of the Press really lay. _ Mr Armstrong did not think Mr

Langstons had exaggerated the position as far as the Press of New Zealand was concerned. The “yellow Press of America “ had nothing on ” the New Zealand Press. The newspapers did not dare to publish Labour s side or the case. The only people not allowed to broadcast ’ were the Labour Party candidates. He thought the people wanted to hear both sides, and contended that the concerts broadcast by the YA stations were.not as attractive as they used to be because they did not make use of local talent, but preferred to bring performers from' Australia and other places. He alleged that the appointments to the Broadcasting Board were political appointments. ■ A knowledge of broadcasting was not necessary. He said New Zealand had been turned into a laughing stock for the rest of the world. Mr Hamilton said he thought the Broadcasting Board was fairly representative of the community. It was not a political board. If Mr Veitch could suggest a scheme by which politics could be discussed over the air he might be helpful. He (Mr Hamilton) had discussed the matter with Mr Savage and others—how they might discuss politics over the air during the forthcoming election—but it was not as easy as it looked. Mr Hamilton asked how many B stations Mr Savage would license. Britain had only 12 stations, and he thought the British system was the admiration of the world. New Zealand had 29 stations. Was it wise to expend money building up so many stations. One of the evils that occurred in Australia was political candidates buying their way on to the air. That could not happen in Britain. They had to decide whether broadcasting was to be owned nationally or commercially. Most of the B stations originated commercially. The Government had to watch that the air did not become choked, and it was a question whether the B stations should be allowed to grow and wield great power over the community,. as some American stations had done. Regarding the B stations’ troubles over copyrights, that was a very difficult question, and it was very complicated. Mr M'Combs said that, although Britain had only a few stations, the British listeners were in touch with Continental stations. He said electricity was being wasted in New Zealand. It could be used to manufacture carbide and nitrates and other things that were needed.. He contended that students

M—————l—— —^ in New Zealand were wasting time on, research work which had no relation to real life, when they could deal with subjects that would be of use to .New: Zealand. ■ .„ • . Mr Richards also doalt with tha treatment of the B stations. The Bill was then put through all stages and passed, and the House rose at 12.10 a-m.