PUBLIC WORKS DEBATE

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 162, 24 July 1886, Page 7

PUBLIC WORKS DEBATE

Wellington, June 22 The debate on the second reading of the New Zealand Loan Bill was continued at yesterday afternoon's sitting of , the House. Mr MoArthur criticised the Statement somewhat severely, and commented strongly on the disregard shown of existing liabilities, and on the fact of old material being charged against new works. He asserted that the Government had overstated the amount available for works in order to strengthen their own position on the Treasury benches. The Napier, Palmerston, and Otago Central Railways should be immediately, pushed on to paying points. He denied the Premier's assertion that the Manawatu Gorge line was. a new railway, though its couree had been somewhat altered since the original inception of the Public Works policy. The Premier's statement to his constituents, that he had tried to work the oracle for his constituents over the Otago Central Railway, did not redound to his credit, and fortunately it was not borne out by the votes passed. Either Sir Robert Stout had tried to get kudos from his constituents for what he had not done, or else he had been guilty of conduct that was not befitting one occupying so high a position. As to the North Island Trunk Loan, he thought it plain that it was to be the milch cow of the colony, and that by means of it every liability was to be got rid of. Mr Menteitk said the Public Works Statement showed that the Government had not carried out the statements they made when, they took office, but had promulgated proposals which would find favour with the great musses of the people. He recognised that the real tunctiou of governments now-a-days was to throw itself on the crest of the wave. The member for Napier had accused the Government of destroying party lines, but he denied that there had been distinct party lines for many years. If that Houee ehould execute the *' happy despatch " he was satisfied that we should in next Parliament see the same heterogeneous elements and the same absence of Parliamentary lines as now existed. He maintained that; our borrowing policy would continue til" the public debfc by its magnitude convinced the great mass of electors that our public works policy was a failure. As to the Otago Central Railway, he failed to see how it could be made reproductive, no matter to wbat point it was carried. He denied that the fact that the Government had placed a large . sum on the Estimates for the construction and maintenance of roads showed that the local government scheme of the Government enunciated last year was a complete failure. He hoped to see the whole question of roads relegated to local bodies, but the Government had seen that so far as re-organising the Local Government system was concerned, the country waa not" sufficiently educated. Although the Public Works Statement did not carry out the policy of Government as enunciated when they took office, it carried out the policy which was in accord with 1 the desire of the colony at the present time, and such a policy as any Government wishing to retain office would have to carry out. Mr J. W. Thomson said that from the standpoint of the last speaker it waa evident that the Government desired not to lead but to. follow the wishes of the country. From. December up till the time that the House met, the country dreaded an extreme P° h . c y * r ?in the Government, and therefora their proposals as submitted in tho Public Works Statement hiad found great accepta- * 10n - ,• Be maintained that the fair inference from the, ColbnialTreasurer's addresses and Tuapeka manifestbYwas that: he meant to borrow ten millions for^ ;tKe -ebbstructipn of P^ b M?> o r k 9.Xn>that; manifesto he gave prominence to *■{»»<£.■ idea- 1 of^ i^ing^tbe W?? f ?A v , x i6r hub $fs*o\ t^i^^goia^Wch^^id heA T ¥^!s?tto«tablce<r genttematf .^id^thia;

should be done by .private enterprise,' bub from the zeal with which he advocated the work, it seemed although he would be favourable to the G yernmont: subsidising it. Respecting the Treasurer's remarks on ; Tuesday, that ho had hot written a line of the Public, Works Statement, the speaker said that- the Minister for Public Works wa? a pluih business man nnd .he 'had ..hot hitherto shown any ingenuity in dealing with figures. Ho urged" that 'the proposed expenditure thi3 year waa too large, considering our ability to p*y it; Instead of proceeding with new radway works, the colony should complete, to a paying point lines already in hand. The general opinion throughout the colony was that one million would be auflicient to borrow. He objected to the principle of authorising contracts, the money for which waa not yet in hand. He predicted that next year the Government would ask for a further loan, and he feared also that each year a loan of a million and a-half would be applied for. While he thought a million was sufficient, he would vote for the second reading of tho bill. becausß. he considered tiimt i the plane of the Government had matured to such an extent that they re quired the money. He, however, thought that if the. Government proposed to ask for another loan next year, thoy should say so at once. _ Mr Peacock eaid there could be very little doubfc that the utterances of the Colonial Treasurei during the recess led to tbo belief that the Government intended to propose a large borrowing policy, and he thought the fact of tbo feeling of the country having been so unmistakably expressed was the cause of the present moderate policy. He did not object to the amount proposed to be borrowed by this bill, but; he did object to the manner in which it was proposed to spend the loan. It eeemed to him there were many lines mentioned in the list, in the eg peciully, which could very well wait till a larger population made the construction of those lines necessary. With regard to the North Island trunk line, he waa not going to twit the Government about bhe statement that it would take four years to make. He believed the line would take longer to construct thaii the Government stated it- would take. He approved of the proposal to purchase land along the route, but strongly disapproved of the money for those purchases being taken from the loan set apart for this line. They all knew that owing to the fact that the Treasurer made a mistake with regard to the £800,000, this proposal to take this money from the North Island loan was made. The Government having made this mistake as to the £800, 000 being available for other purposes than railways, it became a question for them to consider how the sum would be made up. He considered, however, it would be a much better p!an to curtail some of the smaller lines in the South than to divert the North Island Loan from its original purpose. Mr Fulton moved the adjournment of the debate till Friday, which wae agreed to. The House rose at ten minuteß to one.