PARLIAMENT.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XII, Issue 3615, 30 October 1920, Page 5

PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OP EEPEESENTATIVESj

PUBLIC WOEKS ESTIMATES,

WELLINGTON, Oct. 29.

Discussing the Public Works Estimates, Mr Veitch complained of the unfair votes in favour of Auckland province. He cited the ! amount to be spent on public works I iti road districts, and said that £789,000 was to be voted for Whangarei, AuckS land, Tauranga, Gisborne and Taumaruj nui Koad Districts, compared with i £858,000 for the whole of the rest of j New Zealand. The proposed expendi- ' ture in the same “districts on land settlement account was £166,000 out of £250,000, leaving £BI,OOO for the balance of New Zealand. He protested that Auckland was receiving altogether | too great a proportion of public ex- ] penditure. All Ministers controlling j departments were Aucklanders, which I meant that the north had far too strong ; an influence, which operated unfairly ■ to the detriment of Taranaki and the j southern portion of the North Island. He stressed the urgency of the Paekakariki railway deviation, yet only a small amount appeared for this.work. | Nothing hqd "been done to survey the line from Eaetihi to Wanganui, which had been promised for years. The Stratford—Ongarue railway should be pushed on to completion, but these two lines would threaten Auckland business interests, and hereinTay the source of influence working against them. Mr. Veitch also complained that Wanganui was not getting fair treatment in the matter of the provision of hydro-elec-tric power. Ho hoped the Minister bwould see that more equitable disposi- ! tion of public expenditure was made. I Mr. E. W, Smith condemned the proposal to build light and narrow gauge railways, which, -he said, were quite impracticable over most of the New Zealand country. Nothing less than a 3ft. Gin. gauge 'should ever be laid down. ■. ■

'■WELLINGTON, This Bay

Continuing vlio debateLm the Public Works Statement and Estimates after the telegraph office closed, Mr. Horne put in a plea - for the goldfield counties of . Otago, which hi “the past had been the mainstay of the country, but which .were np\y being sadly neglected. ‘‘We hear advocated the completion of ithe main lines of railways, with, subsidiary roads to feed them as the best means of developing the country and increasing its production. Mr Campbell discussed the proposal to deviate the Eimutaku line, while there were so many returned soldiers with neither roads nor railways.

Mr. Glenn defended the Minister’s policy of concentration on the’"main lines. Next in importance came the development of lines and roads in the backbloeks.

Hon. Xgata defended the proposed expenditure in the Auckland province, which was only coining into its own. His worst criticism of the Estimates was the extent of the responsibility the Minister was thrusting on local bodies in the matter of construction and maintenance of* roads in. his district.

Mr. Holland deprecated the locality fight which had gone on during the debate. Either the works in the Auckland province were necessary or they were not necessary. ■, If they were necessary, then the House should join together and vote the money, instead of in petty squabbles over parochial differences. Development should come first, and the money should be spent where it is most needed.

At 3.15 a.m. the Minister rose to reply. .He deprecated the •' suggestion that the method by which public works money should be allocated was per head of population, as suggested by Mr. Atmore. His idea was to allocate it where it would give the best return, and where it was most needed. The first essential to carrying on a successful public works policy was to secure a capable staff of engineers, with efficient organisation, and to put men to work on a basis on which they would be satisfied to go to work cheerfully. Another factor was the employ-

ment of up-to-date machinery, and he was going to have a modern plant as .soon as it was possible to get it. Discussing work in hand, he said that in March next a few of the lines would be completed. Therefore he would not stop them n,ow. There were three lines on which he intended to stop work. Three coal-mine lines would T<e finished in two years’’ time. and that would leave them With the North Auckland Main Trunk line, "East Coast line, Midland Bail way, Stratford —Main Trunk line, and Orepuki. Waiau and Waikokopu branch completion. These lines would then become 1 lie objective of the Department, because they were calculated to give thd country the best returns. It was unfortunate, perhaps, that he came from Auckland, but he hoped he had a mind open, enough to see matters broadly, and his own anxiety was to lines which would promote the greatest development •>- help the people to pay taxation to meet the country’s n°cd. He gave instances of the in f reayml nost of material nccesc,srr Wfl'lro. n-hieh meant J h«t ...v-', .a,., . r .,.-, v n money on th? E-li -tafs, it did no! follow they

were going to get more work done. Labour was also an important factor, and in order to complete his programme he would require from 700 to 1000 more men within two years, and the Minister of Finance would require to provide three millions yearly to keep pace with the progress of work. To cany out the hydro-electric works 'contemplated would absorb from seventeen to twenty millions, which would) give some idea of the magnitude of the task before them. During the recess he hoped to jn'isit various districts and judge of the importance of respective -works on the spot.

The House went into committee at 3.45 a.m., and the whole of the vot ?s were passed in ten minutes.

Mr; Massey intimated that the business to be taken to-day would be the Mining Bills, and also hoped to introduce the Eailway Bill at the afternoon

sitting. The House rose at 4 a.m. till 2.30 this afternoon, it being found impossible to meet at 11.a.m., as previously arranged, owing to the late hour of rising.-