PARLIAMENT

Hokitika Guardian, 2 November 1929, Page 5

PARLIAMENT

(By Telegraph—Per Press Association.^

THE COUNCIL

WELLINGTON, November 1. The Legislative Council met at 2.30 p.m.

Amendments submitted by the Gov-ernor-Genefal to Land Laws' Amendment Bill were agreed to. The Council also agreed to amendments made by the House in the Law Practitioners Amendment. (Solicitors’ Fidelity Guarantee Fund) Bill. Hospitals , and Charitable Jnstituions Amendment .Bill, and Pacific Cable Sale Authorisation Bill were received from the House and put through all their stages and passed without amendment. ' '

Arms Amendment Bill was also received, read a first time and a second time pro forma and referred to tho Statutes Revision Committee. Hon. Reed moved that in the administration of railways special consideration should be given to providing ffacilities-; for the development of land, thereby assisting increased production. The motion was carried. jTlie Council rose at 4.15 p.m.

THE HOUSE. : I), 1 Hie House of Representatives the Amendment to. refer Hie report on wheat back to the Select Committee foi: (further consideration was rejected by 50 .to 20, and the report adopted. A; statement was made on behalf of the .Prime Minister, dealing with government’s efforts to cope with unemployment and stating the Prime Ministers recent promise had been fulfilled/ jj, Eorbes said: “Five weeks ago to-day, the Prime Minister indicated to tfle House that the Government was in a position to promise that by the end of October, all the genuinely unemployed in the Dominion would he offfered employment, provided that they registered at the Government Labour Bureau, and were willing and able to accept the work offered to them. This promise has been fully redeemed.”

The Minister continued: “The Government Labour Bureaux were innudated with applications for employment after, the announcement by the Prime Minister, and during the present month there, were 10,691 new registrations throughout the Dominion. The applications pending at the Labour Bureaux rose rapidly from 2466 on the 30th of September to 6407 on the 16th of October, but since, then, there has been a similarly rapid reduction in the unplaced applicants, due to the large number of men who have been provided with Government employment, also to lapsed applications arid to men being placed with local bodies and private employers; and, although the applications pending throughout the Dominion now total 2,299, only 1,000 of these men are prepared to accept work anywhere that is available.” “The'Cabinet Committee, has met practically every day. During the first week it put into force a schedule of works which provided for the employment eff 1,820 new men on the 'construction of railways, roads, and main highways, land drainage, improvementjs to open lines of railway, plotting arid thinning of State forests; and in seyeral workshops of the Railway. Department throughout the Dominion, and the retention of 775 seasonal workers by the Forestry Department during the second week. Another schedule of similar works, providing for the employment of a further , 1,776 men, was set in motion; and at subsequent • meetings, three other schedules of similar works, which,'with the first and second schedules, made provision for the employment of a total 0f“5,330 new men, and for the'retention of 775 men by the Forestry Department, were prepared.’’

The Native Trustee Amendment Bill was put through the remaining stages and passed.

The House-rose at 6.35 p.m. till 10.30 a.m. next day.