GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

Globe, Volume IV, Issue 399, 22 September 1875, Page 2

GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

(By Electric Telegraph.) From a Correspondent of the Press, HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES. Tuesday, September 21. The Speaker took the chair at 2,30. questions. A few unimportant questions were asked and answered. IMPREST S3UPPLY. An Imprest Supply Bill for £186,000 to cover the accounts from the Agent-General's department, just to hand, was read a second time. ABOLITION BILL.J In committee on the Abolition Bill, on clause 15, The Treasurer moved, as an addition to the end of the first paragraph, a clause making the goldfields revenue mentioned in the section treatable as rates, and therefore to be subsidised. On the second paragraph of the clause, Mr Reid moved the insertion of the following words after " Governor of the colony" in line 20—" Pastoral leases of any Crown lauds may be taken for mining purposes." Hon Major Atkinson opposed the addition, which he saw was very unjust. The provincial districts received all the benefits arising from the pastoral leases, and it would be unfair to the mining districts that their special revenues should be applied to compensating runholders. Mr Mervyn stigmatised the proposal as ridiculous. All the goldfields members opposed the addition, urging that if carried every penny of the goldfields revenue would be required to pay squatters' compensation. Mr Shepherd charged the provincial authorities with always opposing the reduction of the gold duty, Whereupon Sir G. Grey gave notice that he would, at the proper time, move that on and after the passing of the Abolition Act the Goldfields Duty Acts should be repealed, to piove that the provincial authorities were not adverse to doing away with that duty. Mr Mervyn asserted that no compensation was required for pastoral lands taken for goldfields purposes. Mr Reid denying the assertion, Mr Mervyn challenged him for proof. Mr Reid replied that he had no proof there : but he stated it so as a matter of •fact. Compensation was almost invariably given, and if it was not required, as alleged by the member for Mount Ida, no harm could result from the introduction of the words he had moved. Mr Reid's amendment was negatived on the voices. Paragraph three having been struck out, Mr O'Connor moved the following proviso, of which he had given notice : " Provided that after making the deductions herein provided, the balance shall be held for the purposes of this Act to be general rates, and shall be paid to the public account, and a separate account thereof kept, and such balance shall be paid over to the governing body of the district from which such revenue has been received, together with any proportionate endowments which may accrue from the land fund, and from the consolidated revenue, to be computed in the manner provided in 19th and 20th sections hereof." Mr Reid gave notice that he would oppose the proviso unless the subsidy was upon the gross. Mr Macandrew would improve upon the last suggestion, and moved that the customs revenue should be subsidised as well. The one was quite as likely to be realised as the other.

Hon Major Atkinson said all the revenues from leases, &c, would be required to provide the goldfields with necessary government. What would be subsidised would be a special tax tne miners themselves raised, which was but simply an act of justice. Mr BBADSHAW pointed out that in Otago £20,000 was received from the goldfields, and only £7SGO expended. The gold duty should be entirely abolished. Their government should be as direct as possible, and with that view gave notice of his intention to move—" Provided the governing bodies should be elected absolutely by miners having miners' rights or business licenses not less than three months old prior to date of such election." Mr Pyke supported the proviso of the member for Buller. Mr Harrison enquired if Government had devised any means of allocating the goldfields revenue, and Mr Wales if double the subsidies would be paid to municipalities within the goldfields. Hon Major Atkinson replied that the goldfields subsidies would only be paid to the districts outside of the municipalities. Mr O'Gonor's proviso was agreed to. 'I o Mr Bradshaw's amendment considerable opposition was raised, on the ground that it would throw the control of the expenditure into the hands of a section of the goldfields population, there being many people on the goldfields who did not possess miners' rights or business licenses. The amendment was negatived by 35, against 13. (Sir G-. Grey next moved " That one month after the Act comes into operation the Gold Duties Act should be repealed, and the export duty on gold should cease." In support of his motion Sir G. Grey said the export duty on gold was vicious in principle. With equal justice an export duty should be placed upon wool. Such a tax would not prevent the working of any run, but the present export duty on gold practically shut .up mauy poor claims which without it would be profitably '

worked, but a reduction of the duty was only one means of assisting and developing the mining industry. Another thing to be done would be to enact a Bill by which the freehold in land would be given to miners that they might reside upon their own property, and work land in the manner in which they found most to their advantage, instead of being bound as at present to keep a number of men employed in many cases nnprofitably, For the present he would content himself by moving this proviso. Hon Major Atkinson need hardly say the Government were not prepared to accept the amendment. In the first place it was wrongly placed. If the hon gentleman desired repeal of those particular Acts, he should bring in an Act repealing them. It was very inconvenient to go into the matter upon this clause of the Bill. The passage of the Bill should not be delayed by the discussion of the question on a side wind. Let it be discussed on its merits in the manner suggested, and he would undertake, on the part of the Government, to give every facility for that discussion. He pointed out that the total repeal of the duty meant a serious matter for some provinces, because in that case Government would be called upon to provide greater sums to carry on in Nelson, Westland, and Auckland. Whether or not Otagocould stand it he did not know. [Mr Macandrew— They are quite prepared for it.] Well, if that province was quite prepared to go in for a reduction of the duty then possibly the province would relieve the Colonial Government of a pressure upon it for an advance to the province. Mr Macandrew said Otago had' been long desirous of reducing the duty, the Provincial Council having repeatedly passed Ordinances to that effect. He did not understand the insinuation of the Treasurer about Otago putting pressure upon the Government. What pressure ? That province was not pressing for anything for which it was not entitled. The province was quite prepared to forego the duty. In fact, there was quite an insignificant duty in that province, not amounting to more than £12,000, which was really not worth bothering about any longer. He had always objected to the duty on the principle that a tax might just as well be placed upon corn. Sir G. Grey certainly could not withdraw his amendment. The sooner the subject was discussed the better. If the Government agreed to it he could show them where enormous reductions in expenditure could be made, which would more than counterbalance the loss of revenue. Mr Stafford—The hon Colonial Treasurer should wish to see repealed a duty, towards which the treasury would otherwise be called upon to contribute as a subsidy, but he could conceive some goldfields which would prefer the retention of the tax, seeing it was treated as rates, and would be subsidised. Mr O'Conor felt bound to support any proposal to reduce the duty, as did Mr Shepherd, who moved as a further amendment, that the reduction should take effect concurrent with the Act coming into operation. : . Sir D. Bell would support the reduction if brought in by itself. Mr Creighton enquired if Government were prepared to sacrifice the goldfield's revenue Hon Major Atkinson pointed out that the committee had just before treated the gold duty as a fundamental pare of the Bill, and to carry this proviso would render what waa done before ridiculous. As Treasurer he was quite prepared to accept the amendment, but had not the least hesitation in telling the goldfields members prepared to support it, that the only persons who would really benefit by the change would be two or three large companies. Working miners would gain nothing. Where were the funds to come from for opening up the goldfields ? Did the committee think a reduction of the duty would add anythingto the miner's wage*? Certainly not. He cautioned the members voting for the amendment that they were merely playing into the hands of a few rich companies. |" ories of " No."] Time would show. The discussion was interrupted by the dinner hour. (From a correspondent of tlie Press.) In the House this afternoon Mr Bradshaw gave notice that he would move in committee on the Abolition Bill, after " district," in line 46, clause 19, to insert the following:—"Provided that the subsidy shall in no case exceed 60 per cent of land revenue, which has been or may be hereafter raised from time to time within such district."