WELLINGTON TOPICS
ODDS AND ENDS THEN AND NOW (Special to “Guardian.”! WELLINGTON, June IG. Among the missiles that are being indiscriminately levelled against the enterprising New Zealand Legion at tiie present time is one designed to prevent any reduction in the numerical strength of the House of Representatives, which to-day harbours eighty members, seventy-six Europeans and four Maoris, all loyal and capable gentlemen of course, anxious to render adequate service to King and Country. In addition to the House of Replesehtatives there is a Legislative Council, which, until a year or so ago, consisted fr°m forty to forty-five “honourables” who played a very useful part in giving this Chamber some of the appearance of the House of Lords and part of its dignity. Of late, however, the Council, without lessening any of its propriety, has lost much of its numerical strength, and on an important division might not muster more than six votes a side, with the venerable Speaker or his more youthful substitute to announce the result. In view of these facts it is interesting to find in “Hansard” of August 7 1912, a little less than twenty-one years ago, that the late Mr George Lauren son, then but a few weeks out of office himself, submitted to the House o’f Representatives a Bill, proposing thqt a Cabinet should not be chosen by the leader of a successful election campaign, formally accepted by the Govornor-Genei al but by the individual members of the. House. The second reading of the Bill covered, only twenty pages of “Hansard” Mr Laurenson and Sir Joseph Ward, holding 1 opposite views, being the most lengthy speakeis, and on a division the Bill was negatived. It may be interesting to mention that members still in the House who voted with Mr Laurenson were Mr HAtrnore, Mr J. G. Coates, Mr 0. W. Forbes, Mr A, Harris, Mr W. A. Veiteh and Mr j. A. Young. Those remaining on the other side of the House were Sir Apirana Nga-ta and Mr H. M. Campbell. No doubt the Executive of the New Zealand Legion already has looked closely into the authorities quoted by Mr Laurenson in regard to electoral reform, but in the course of bis speech the late member for Lyttelton quoted passages which well would bear repetition. They cannot be. repeated in a fragment of this kind, but they well might be added to the Legion's library for general distribution.. Here is a passage taken from a report of a Special Committee of our . own House of Representatives which, has not yet borne fruit. “Many and very serious evils are inseparably connected with the system of party government here. It' is unsuited to such a colony as New Zealand.. A variety of circumstances dxist here which does not exist in Great Britain and which makes it.desirable that any system of Government adopt -d here should rest upon well understood laws.” Forty years a~o New Zealand was beginning to. realise the wants of its Parliaments and its laws. ' Mr Forbes and Mr Coates, twenty years ago, botli gave their approval, or at any rate their votes, to the reduction of the membership of the House 0 f Representatives from, eighty to fifty, in harmony with Mr Lauren‘■on’s proposal. So did Mr Atrnore, Mr Harris, Mr Veitoh and - Mr. Young, three of whom have tasted the advantages of responsibility. Whether these gentlemen still are favourable to a reduction in the number of members of the House. remains to be seen. The New Zealand Legion has not vet definitely moved in this matter; indeed its work seems to be more in the direction of'talking than iri the task of doing, and the public may have to Wait until springtime before its policy is definitely disclosed. Meanwhile it niav rest assured that there is plenty of work for it to do, if it is really in earnest and that an expectant public will welcome its advent.
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Hokitika Guardian, 20 June 1933, Page 3
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657WELLINGTON TOPICS Hokitika Guardian, 20 June 1933, Page 3
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