GOOD PROGRESS

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 380, 15 November 1932, Page 5

GOOD PROGRESS

("Post" Special Commissioner) .

WORK OF SESSION general desire to accelerate the business coming legislation

Wellington, Monday. Substantial progress was made by the ' House of Representatives this week and there is no doubt" that there is a general desire on the part of members to close down the 'session •hefore Christmas. Old "Parliament^, rians are amazed at the progress which is " being made' ih the 'Estimates. Although only three sittings haye been'devoted to the Estimates, seventeen classes out of the fift'y liave been" put through, and these include some of the most contentious. Oii top of the Estimates three Bills have beeh passed by both Houses, and if the present rate of progress is mairitained the Government might find it necessary to put stop-gaps on the Order Paper such as discussions on departmental reports, in order to give it time to prepare its business. The fact that there will be no Monday .sitting next week demonstrates that the Government is well satisfied with the progress which is being made. At the present time the Government has two Bills on the Order Paper, and there are four others in the hands of select committees. The measures ready to be proceeded with are the Local Authorities Sinking Funds Bill and the Electoral Amendment Bill, and the' Prime Minister has indicated that he desires to dispose of these during the coming week. Both Bills are contentious. The form »r seeks to restrict temporarily the power of local

authorities to withdraw any existing fund from th'e cpntrol of the- Public Trustee, as Sinking Fund Commissioner, hefore the maturity of the loan for which the sinking fund has been created. Some of the local bodies contend that they can obtain more favourable terms elsewhere, hut the Government holds that interest rates at the present time should be kept as low as possible. Furthermore, any wholesale with'drawal of sinking funds from the Public Trust at the present time might embarrass that institution. It should not be inferred that the Public Trust is financially unsound, but it is recognised that any material alteration of one of its important activities at a time when difficult problems have to be faced might have undesirahle consequences The Public Trust carries out large scale lending operations, and many of its debtors are finding it difficult to make en.ds meet. On the other hand the Public Trust is the debtor of local bodies which have their sinking funds in that office and should the local authorities make wholesalp withdrawal of their sinking funds, the Public Trustee would in turn be compelled to adopt a more rigid attitude towards borrowers who are behind ip their interest payments on loans granted by him.- As a large amount of this money has been lent on ruraj securities, th'e farming community, which needs all the help it can be given, would suffer. Electoral Reform The Electoral Amendment Bill, which makes permaneut the four-year Parliament, will he opposed by the Labour Party, but one wonders if there are many members who do not secretly welcome the legislation. After all, it is very comforting to a member of Parliament, whose majority has been a slight one, to have his tenure extended for another year. The probahility that the select committee of the House, which is at present hearing evidence on the Superannuation Bill, will be unable to complete its investigations in time.to have the measure passed this sessiop, is giving the Government some concern. The longer the passage of the legislation is postp.oned the greater will be the liability of the State in conneetion with the three funds under its control. It is essential that the funds should be made actuarially sound at the earliest possible date, and if the Bill is not proceeded with' this session it will mean that it will have to stand over for perhaps eight or nine months. -The Government has not given up hope that the measure will receive the assent of Parliament during the present session, hut judging by the am.ount of evidence that is still to he heard, those hopes appear to he very slender. Building Safeguards The Prime Minister anu.ounced today that the Building Construction Bill, which was introduced during the main session of 1931, hut which was not proceeded with beyond the second reading, will he re-introduced next week. This Bill is based on the findings of the expert committea which was set up after the Hawkes Bay earth'quake to investigate building* hylaws and regulations, and which brought down reeommendations which it eonsidered would impTqve the earthquake resistance of future buildings. The Bill has already been before a select eommittee of the House, which has heard the views of local bodies on the suhject, and as both' parties are agreed that every precaution should be taken to safeguard against future disasters, it is not likely that the measure will pi'ovide a lorig dehaifee. The Poultry Amendment Bill, providing for the* registration of poultry keepers with more than twelve fowk

or ducks, was sarcastically received by several members when introduced by the Minister of Agriculture (the Hon. C. E Macmillan), and it is likely that the minister will have to run the gauntlet again in th'e near futurp when he brings down a bill providing for the registration of tomato growers. MoreoVer, if present intentions are adhered to, Mr. Macmillan will placp before the House still another bill of this nature, the Stallions Registratiop. Bill. If ■ he does not receive the titlp of Minister of Registrations, it will not he the fault of some of the humorists of the House. It is authoritatively stated that the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates wij.1 resume the administration of the Public Works Department in the near future. During Mr. Coates's ahsence at Ottawa, the portfolio' was held hy Mr.' Macmillan, who is still carrying on. It is not likely, however, that Mr Coates will again take over Employment, which he 'temporarily handed over-' to the Postmaster-General (the Hon. A. Hamilton); Mr. Hamilton ahly. handled the unemployment situation during the difficult winter "months, and'it is eonsidered that he should carry on and |eave Mr. Coates freer to handle the problems arising out of the Ottawa Conference. The small farm seheme, however, may he administered hy Rfr. Coates, who originated the prqpasal and has great hopes that it will prove a big factor in the solving of the unemployment problem. }