The Guardian (And Evening star,with which is in-Corporate the west coast Times.) THURSDAY, JULY 26th. 1923 ELECTORAL REFORM.

Hokitika Guardian, 26 July 1923, Page 2

The Guardian (And Evening star,with which is inCorporate the west coast Times.) THURSDAY, JULY 26th. 1923 ELECTORAL REFORM.

In a couple of week;,’ time it v\ill ];•.* eleven veers .since the Reform Governn, ent promises! Parliament nml the country electoniJ reform. Tho Einanciul Statement tlelivored on August fi, 191-’, put tho pledge in concrete fashion; in words that could not have Ihjou more explicit without actually stating the kind of measure' which was to Ire submitted to Parliament. The -Minister .said: ‘‘The Government is fully sensible of the great necessity for eloetora! reform, and in due course a measure will lie submitted for the consideration of members by which the system of second ballots will ho repealed and another method of election substituted.” The Second Ballot Act, wn.s repealed all right, but that is all. Apparently tho Beform Party ceased to be “fully sensible of the great necessity for electoral reform,” and felt that, its interests were sufficiently served by reverting to the old style of “first past the post” under vliich scores of politicians, mainly Masseyites, have been able to get into Parliament in defiance of the wishes of tho bulk of the people in tho electorates which they cannot Ik? said to have represented. Now, after eleven years, the Government is seemingly once again “sensible of the great neee.ssity for electoral reform,” for tho abandoned pledge of 1912 has boon resuscitated. It does not appear coitain, however, (says the Lyttelton Times), that Mr Massey (for he is the Government) is quite “fully” convinced of this need, for although h© has undertaken to introduce an Electoral Bill he does not say that, it will bo passed into law. However, we suppose tlmt something is gained if any proposal to change that from “first post tho post” can issue from the Cabinet room of the present Government. Mr Massey says that his Bill will be “a revelation.” It certainly will be that if it proposes to give this country the preeminently sound and just system of proportional representation, for this has been attacked, from almost every possible angle by Mr Massey nnd his friends. Still, they are such notorious political opportunists that we must confess that anything is possible; and wo know that something extra special is needed to maintain the claim of the

party to bo “tho only true Liberals.” Also, it may have occurred to Mr Massoy that the redemption of such an ancient pledge as that of electoral reform is a task that is worth performwell, to m-nke up for lost time. We know that ono of tho Ministers, Sir Francis Bell, is a proportionafist, a* becomes the brainiest member of the team, while Mr Massey could quote “Hansard” quite copiously to show that advocacy on his part of proportional V.eprescniation was no new tiling. People who realise that the only right, foundation of Parliament is truo representation will await with a great deal of interest the appearance of Air .Massey’s Bill; and, since it has been said that the ago of miracles is not yet passed. lot us hope that at long last tho Reformers are going to reform.