PARLIAMENT

Manawatu Herald, Volume L, Issue 3961, 27 June 1929, Page 3

PARLIAMENT

OPEN'S TO-DAY. IMPORTANT MEASURES. Parliament will open to-day. The session will be the most interesting of any has been held in recent years, by reason of the change of Government that has tagen place. The.consensus of opinion is that the Government’s tenure of offijee is not likely to be seriously, challenged, and that .the launching of an amendment of no-confi-dence from the Reform benches in the course'of the Address-in-Replv debate is improbable. The draft of the Speech from the Throne, in which the' Government’s legislative programme fcjr the ses • sion will be outlined, has been approved by Cabinet. The measures to be submitted by the Government for the approval of members will lie important, but they may not tie of an overburdening chan'aeter. Taxation, of course, will occupy an important place in the programme, in vie'w of the necessity for making up the deficit of £577,000 in the country’s finances as disclosed at the end of the last financial year. The Governfment’s financial arrangements will lie affected by the earthquake disaster on the West Coast, but whether this will mean an increase in taxation beyond what, was intended to recoup the deficit remains to be seen. At the moment it does not seem as if the earthquake will require any special taxation increase to be made. No announcement is yet available regarding possible appointments to the Legislative Council. As the Government will have (to have a majority in that Chamber to (ensure the passage of any contentious legislaion which may pass the Lower House with the help of the Labour Party, and there may be a doubt as to the political leanings of the Upper House, it is expected than an announcement regarding Legislative Council appointments may be made fairly soon.

Whatever arrangements are made for curtailing the hours of sitting, it is believed to be certain that nothing in the. nature of a closure will be proposed. Daylight sittings may not be decided upon, but it is thought that some attempt will be made to overcome the time-hon-oured process of legislation by exhaustion. 'The first important business of the session will be consideration of an Impreset 'Supply Bill to provide lor the payment of Civil Service salaries. As such a Bill enables members to talk freely on any subject they please, it is expected that the debate will be prolonged, and that a wide field of subjects will be traversed.