HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Feilding Star, Volume XIII, Issue 31, 10 September 1891, Page 2

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Tuesday, September 7. The House resumed at 7.30. On the motion for the third reading of the Government Loans to Local Bodies' Bill, Mr FergU3 strongly protested against the measure, and said the Government should not be allowed to spend .£50,000 without some control over it by the house. The Premier said they were told they were now asking for extraordinary power but he held in his hand a Bill with exactly the same object brought in by the late Government, only that that Bill asked for £100,000. whereas the present one provided for £50 000. He denied tbat the Bill was a political necessity. There never was any Bill hedged round with so many safeguards, and there could be no political patronage under it. The Government were simply exercising con* stitutional power for carrying on the colonisation of the country, and he whs surprised at the Opposition quibbling over the measure. The Bill was road a third time on the voices and passed. On the motion that the House go into Committee of Supply, Mr Rees moved an amendment to the effect that Yaile's system of railway management should be fairly tried on the Auckland railway. The amendmeut was then lost by 30 to 21. The House rose at 5.30. Wednesday, September 9. In answer to a qnestiou from Mr 80l leston, as to what business the G< v 3rnment proposed to go on with this session, the Premier said it was intended to bring the session to a close probably at the end of the week if the discussion of the Bs timacea proceeded -withtot».fc a. waste of time. The Premier moved the second reading of the Stamp Acts Amendment Bill, which imposed duty in the same way as a receipt on all passenger steamer ticket* of the value of £2 and upwards, and proposed to impose a totalisator tax of 11---per cent on all machines at race meetings, to take effect from the beginning of October next. The Property Tax Bil l , imposing a Property 'jax of Id in the pound for ihe year ending 31st >Jarch next, was read a second time.