PARLIAMENT.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVII, Issue 51, 31 October 1913, Page 2

PARLIAMENT.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30. i LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. [Per Press Association.! Wellington, October 30. The Legislative Council met at 2.30. Consideration of the Land Bill was resumed in Committee, and the discussion lasted well on into the evening sitting, when the Hon. 11. F. Bell opposed the , amendment, which was rejected by It to 9. The Bill was finally passed through Committee, and the Council .rpse at 9.10 p.m. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. The House met at 2.30 p.m. BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

The Public Accounts Committee brought down the report on the*Bank of New Zealand Act Amendment Bill. The Chairman (Mr J. B. Hine) said that the clause providing for a sinking fund was struck out. The provision that in the event of the winding up of the Bank the assets and reserved stock shall become the property of the shareholders was struck out. The interests of the State were , already preserved by legislation; clause was added providing for vetoing the using of the reserve ,fu»ld s for. the purpose of paying dividends..unless the ■onsent of the Minister of Finance is irst obtained. The honorarium of, lirectors had been .increased from 1 02000 to £3OOO, and proxies were limited to 500.

Sir Joseph Ward stated that he. was surprised that the committee had net that morning in tjie unavoidable ihsence of the Minister of Finance, vho was indisposed. A Bill of such ast importance should not have been gone on with in the absence of the Minster.

Mr Massey said that the commercial community and people generally were waiting the passing of the Bill with lonsiderable interest.

Mr J. Graigie suggested the setting ip of a Royal Commission representng the commercial agricultural and ndustrial interests, .to inquire what •ould be done, to bettqif jfche, banking ystems of the Dominion. At the mesent time there, yfere forty mil--1 ions ofjpippey. deposjteflf^ l the banks ’ . hiol) did not eaifU one, py pay of jpterst. He moved, an api.epfijiu.ent to thq ( ommittees repo.rt .udpye. I; , ; Mr D. Buddo seconded the amendment. • : qf,- ' ■i,oo/ ; :r | Mr Newman said-that our arrangeI uents with. , the, Bapk were exceed--1 igly, .qnd dfp had a { Jpt i- • sympathy, /or £\r Cvfli&jf.s aiufiudjq i,out. Hy. favored thp, sfltying up„pf, Rovai Commission to investigate

anking conditions. Sir Joseph Ward disagreed with flr Newman’s suggestion. Ho stated lat in nine cases out of ten the Bank

f New Zealand was lending this ctmnjvy its own money,ln his-opinion the I w>?v I')pfor.9 1 ' ) p for .9 j lould hot be liurriedi v “He afd not say lj should be deferred, but baste was nwise. They should ’’and :ireful., Friction, existed between 1 ’Wi'6* bink and t)ie shareholders, ’■ana he [bought it would be a'Syisp thing for ■he country to own the Bank right blit, aiying the shareholders fully what ih'ey were entitled to, but he did not elieve that they cbulli dp that in, a

urry. .That it could be done with

afety was beyond all question. Mr H. G. Ell endorsed Sir Joseph Yard’s injunction to refrain from aste in banking legislation. He mov--1 a further amendment; To set up ■ select committee this session instead

f a Royal Commission. Mr G. W. Russell said that he beieved that if Mr Oraigie’s amendment .vere carried, a serious hardship would ie imposed on the work of the Rank, le, at one time, believed that it ,-ould be a good thing to convert the lank into a State Bank, but now he

ad serious doubts upon' the ihaftet; Mr J. A. Hanan favored the formaion of a State Bank separate from ny existing institution. He also (greed with the suggestion to secure nformation concerning banking instiutions.

On a division, Mr Ell’s amendment vas rejected by 4b votes to 18, and Mr Crigie’s. amendment was defeated iv 41 votes to 21.

The committee’s jrgjjoijt )y£is adopted. Mr Herries moved we p Second readng of the Railway Amendment Bill, explaining that the provisions were nainly of a technical nature.—Sir J. Yard, Mr W. A. Veitch, and Mr H. 1. Ell generally commended the Bill, nit urged better treatment .of the neu in the second division.

The Beer Duty Bill was read a third hue.

The Science and Art Bill passed Trough Committee with slight amendment.—The Railway Bill was passed a second time. The Hon. Rhodes moved the second •ending of the Post and Telegraph Vipemlment Bill, providing for the nayment of three per cent, interest m Savings Bank accounts in accounts ip to £looo.—The Bill was read p

.epond time and the House r,pso at 12.30 a.m.