UPPER HOUSE REFORM

Hokitika Guardian, 10 August 1929, Page 5

UPPER HOUSE REFORM

TASK IN NEW SOUTH WALES

SYDNEY, Aug. 1

The' State’ Government is beginning to wake up to the fact that it is not so easy to reform the Legislative Council as ot looks, even with a big sprinkling in that nominee Chamber of Labour men who. are supposed to be there largely for the purpose of giving the Upper House the coup de grace when the time is felt to be ripe.

The trouble is'that, when it comes to the pinch, few politicians want to surrender life nominee seats in the aristocratic Chamber of review for the alternative, under elective reform,, of having to go out and fight an election if they want to retain their places. The Government is faced with three obstacles to reform. ; The first is the ■Legislative Assembly. If the Legislative Council electors are to be the same as for the. Legislative Assembly, it will mean simply the creation of a second machine-like Party House, the case of the Senate. Again, the Legislative Council itself is hardly likely to agree to a reform that will toss its members out into the cold world. Then there has to 'bo a referendum of the people on the question of Upper House reform, and it is not improbable that tKis would be negatived with the Labour Party swinging its weight against the Government’s methods of reform, as distinguished from Labour’s policy of straight-out abolition.