MINISTERIAL STATEMENT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5172, 19 October 1877, Page 3

MINISTERIAL STATEMENT.

The following statement was delivered by Sir George Grey in the House on October 15: —Before proceeding to point out the bourse intended to be followed by the Ministry now in office, he trusted the House would allow him to make a statement respecting the cause of his occupying the seat he then occupied, and the course the hon. gentlemen with him were anxious to pursue. 'He would state to the House briefly that it was within the recollection of all hon. members that within the past few days a Ministerial crisis bad taken place, owing to the no-confidence motion proposed by the hon. member for Dunedin City in the late ■Government. It fell upon that hon. member (Mr. Larnach) to form a Ministry. That hon. member requested his (Sir George Grey’s) assistance in the matter. Very great difficulty was experienced in bringing that object -about. As bon. members were aware the House was divided into three parties, and it was in consequence extremely difficult to reconcile the political differences thatexisted. Henow desired to show the House that it was, the wish of the Ministry for him to point out the course under the existing circumstances they intended to pursue. Firstly, he would say that at the present time only a small number, comparatively, of gentlemen bad taken office. Some of the portfolios had been already divided ; the remainder would be shortly. They also intended having with them in the Ministry certain native members. He understood the main thing at heart at the present moment was the thorough consideration of the financial condition of the colony. He would advocate that every possible retrenchment be carried out. That was to say, every retrenchment that could be made without affecting the ■welfare of the colony or its public service. ' It •was certainly the impression left upon his own mind that a thorough retrenchment was. absolutely necessary. He would state that it was the intention of the Ministry to apply to the House very shortly for a further Imprest Supply in order to carry on the requirements of the colony. The sum of £100,006 lately voted he had hoped would be untouched at the time he assumed office. He found, however, that more than one-half of it had been exhausted. The residue of that sum did not exceed £33,000. He trusted the liberality of the House would permit of another £IOO,OOO being drawn, in order to enable the Government to carry on for a little while. In addition to the immediate want of funds, there were liabilities of the colony exceeding what had been anticipated. With regard to the assets of the colony,: he need not say that, looking to the vast and great capabilities of the colony, it would be fully able to bear such burdens as would be cast upon it. Large sums were being realised from the sale of land, and no doubt could exist that if the liberality of the House would place at the disposal of the Ministry the- sums asked for, the pressure would be but momentary. In the face of the demands that Were being made, it was but right that the House should know the direction in which the proposed reductions were to be made. The real essential mode of carrying out. these reductions was by changing the administration prevailing in the colony. Honorable gentlemen ought to know that recently very great changes have taken place. Two great systems have until lately been running concurrently—the system adopted by the General Government and that of the Provincial Governments. There was no doubt that those two systems, notwithstanding the action taken by the Government, had never merged into cue. There was a vast and unnecessary expenditure through a system of administration unsuited to a united Government. The great effort should be to devise a system of administration by which the public affairs of the colony would be grasped by one Government. By that means very great simplification would be attained. He believed that considerable reduction could be effected in the management of the railways. He thought the reductions that could be made in this respect would fully meet the views of the House. In these two directions they intended to work to the best of then’ ability. He trusted to be able to show to the House that they were worthy of the confidence reposed in them. In addition to these two great heads of retrenchment it was necessary that in minor matters the same spirit should operate. In order to show their determination to do what was right in this matter, the Ministry had resolved to .begin with themselves. (Hear, hear.) By so doing, they would leave their hands more unfettered to deal with other persons. By commencing in this way, it must not be thought that they would interfere with those persons in receipt of small salaries. They would as far as possible spare all people who were so situated, and would deal only with those people who could afford it. In saying that they were determined to carry out retrenchments of that sort, they were equally resolved that the public works should not be neglected. The system of public works should be carried to a conclusion, and he trusted to a satisfactory one. They believed that the several savings they proposed to make would tend towards the more, energetic carrying out of the scheme of public works to which New Zealand was - committed. The preceding Ministers had to deal with a new state of things when that policy wjis initiated. They had to encounter the opposition from a race who did not comprehend the purpose for which the works were being carried on. Under such a state of things it was quite natural that mistakes should occur, and that things should not be done as well as they might be done. With these examples before us, he thought that by adapting themselves to their policy, and properly carrying it out, they would carry on more satisfactorily than ever the public works of the colony. Ha would now turn to a very interesting portion of his subject. It was the question relating to native lands and the the present Ministry intended pursuing with regard to them. He would say at once that they proposed to withdraw the Native Land Sales Suspension Bill. He found, after consultation with his colleagues, that this Act was not popular with the native race. It was by no means likely to give the advantages that were expected from it. The Native Land Act of 1873, it appeared, was sufficient to prevent improper dealings with respect to those lands, and sufficient to meet the present requirements. Speaking generally, the policy with regard to the native race would be of a nature that would tend to increase our relations with them. In this work be had as colleague the Hon. Mr. Sheehan, who possessed special advantages for aiding in that respect. He had an intimate knowledge of the natives throughout the island, was born in the colony, and possessed a thorough knowledge of their language. On one subject he (Sir G. Grey) was anxious to make his sentiments known in the House. It was a subject upon which misapprehension .existed. He would like to remove that misapprehension. It had been said that he (Sir George Grey) w s hostile to Wellington ap a seat of government. To that bo would answer that he could not conceive how any such misunderstanding could possibly be arrived at. He thought ho might say with confidence that if any man in New Zealand was entitled to represent Wellington in this inland it was himself. . For years ho had known this place. He had watched it from ita cradle, cultured it in its earlier childhood, and it was not very likely that he would now him from it, when to its infancy he had given 'bo much care. With regard to public lands questions were involved upon which misunderstandings might exist. In

the minds of the hon. members from ■ the South such misunderstandings may prevail as to the intentions of the Government in respect to the lands in that district. He-could only say at present that he was not able to bind himself to any particular course. Perfect .confidence might be rested upon the fact that the Ministry would calmly and carefully consider the whole question; and endeavor to come'to a conclusion that would be satisfactory the whole country and to those specially interested. With regard to the present business before the House be would remind honorable gentlemen that already the House had been over three months in session. The duties of hon. members required the session to be brought to as speedy a close as possible. The Ministry therefore proposed to take up a certain number of Bills at present on the table of the House, such as the Lands Bill, the Mines Bill, the Volunteer Act, the New Zealand Consolidated Stocks Bill, and some others would be submitted, to the House in a day! or two.. At the same - time they proposed dropping some of the, other measures, such ns the Settlements Works Advances Bill, and the Land Sales Suspension Bill. So doing would greatly tend to. facilitate the business. With regard to private Bills, the. largest number of days possible' would be placed at the disposal of hon. members for getting through with the work, in order to have those Bills passed through. He thought that a very few weeks would suffice to dispose. of the whole of the business.. He (Sir George Grey) wished also to state that they proposed giving a great deal of attention to questions connected with the goldfields. He was himself a member tor a goldfields district, and was aware of the importance the subject demanded. He believed that the • development of the goldfields was ~an important element in the welfare of this colony. They were fully deserving much attention. Goldmining in New Zealand is an industry that is as yet in its infancy. Oply that the session was now at such a late stage, he would propose that the office of Minister of Mines be established. With regard to the measures of the present Ministry, he had already told the House that the foremost question was that relating to the finances of the colony. The second was the great change of administration. But they also intended to prepare a series of measures so that the representation of the the colony might be put in a fairer and better position than it now occupies. In was their intention to place the representative system of New Zealand on such a basis that the power of the popular will might be truly felt. He trusted that hon. members would give him credit forpossessing the desire of at no time wishing to impose upon the country views that were exclusively his own. He would feel it his duty to advance only so far as the popular will would dictate, and the requirements of the colony demanded. He would ascertain what the popular will required upon the great ques\ tions, and having ascertained that, give effect to it. The Ministry had resolved that in so far as the popular will might direct itself in regard to those great measures, they would carry them out to the very utmost of their power. But if, on the other hand, the public desired to have carried out what was contrary to the convictions of his Ministry, they would then allow other gentlemen to come forward to administer the wishes of the country. Holding these views, they did not intend to press forward any of the great measures this session which he (Sir George Grey) was desirous of seeing introduced into this country. During the recess such of the measures as would be considered suitable to the times would be carefully prepared and submitted to the House. It would be then for hon. members to judge whether the Ministry had fulfilled the trust placed in their hands. It would then be, at the commencement of next session, for the House to resolve whether they would any longer give them their support. The House would then be free to say whether they were to be the representatives of what he might venture to call this august Assembly. Ho would really apply that term to it. Hon., gentlemen might be aware that to many thousand young hearts in New Zealand this was the most august .Assembly they had ever known ; the Assembly they recognised as possessing the power of dealing with the property, nay, the very lives of the inhabitants of these islands. We knew that bn this very Assembly rested the building up of a new constitution. We knew that one constitution was destroyed and that no other had yet been erected to take its place. By an improved system of representation the people of New Zealand would have the power of making their voice heard in the constitution under which they and their descendants were to live. The generations that were yet to come would look with pride and veneration upon us, and especially upon the basis whereon the future greatness of this colony was to be built. That can be done by taking the people of New Zealand into onr entire confidence. No single fact connected with the finance of the colony would be withheld from the House by the Ministry. In this great task he would ask the House to give their assistance. Until it should be proved that they did not fulfil the expectations of the House, he would ask for patience and consideration to be accorded them.