RAILWAYS AND FINANCE

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 113, 3 August 1927, Page 16

RAILWAYS AND FINANCE

BUDGET DEBATE AFFECTED A PROTEST VOICED (THE SUN'S Parliamentary Reporter.') WELLINGTON, Tuesday. A. complaint to the House of Representatives that opportunity was not given for members to peruse the Railway Statement before the financial debate was voiced in the House by Sir Joseph Ward, who said that an intelligent review of the financial situation was impossible without a statement of the biggest and most important State department. He did not question the right of the Government to bring the statement down separately, but all members of the House had a right to see it before the general financial debate commenced. Sir Joseph suggested postponement of the debate till the summary is prepared. Mr. Coates said that it was the practice of a number of State department reports to be presented separately. The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. H. E,. Holland, said that if the summary were not made available to members those who spoke early in the debate would be at a disadvantage. It would be well if in future an attempt were made to make the fullest information available before the Budget debate began. * Mr. G. W. Forbes, Nationalist Leader, also protested. “I don’t agree that it is either desirable or necessary or feasible that all accounts should be in before the debate starts,” said the Minister of Finance, the Hon. W. Downie Stewart. “To do that we would either have to postpone the Budget till the end of the session or get two or three new printing offices.”