PARLIAMENT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 236, 29 September 1908, Page 3

PARLIAMENT.

| * • MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28. By Telegraph.—Press Association. . i Wellington, Last A,ght , The Council met at 2.3 Up.m Replying to the Hon. Carueross, the Attorney-General staUd it was not intended to introduce legislation thi< sesi «on offering facilities to local bodies ,to borrow money for the purpose of erecting gasworks. The I'oliee Offences Amendment Bill was further considered in comuiitu-e Sub-section 2, section IG, was amended to provide that the period of detention of women m institutions for fallen woment shall not exceed twelve months. 19 ' *? idl P vcs tlle governing authorrty of institutions power to , make by-laws providing for the mode •f employment (and hours of labor) was amended to provide that by-laws ■ould be made fixing the rate of re-

muaeration of detained persons, if any. ■lhe BUI with amendments was reportn£ , read a third tmic and passed. m Industrial Conciliation mm Arbitration Act Amendment Bill, from the ilouse, was read a first time, and the snond reading is set down for to-mor-row. The Attorney-General, in movV,T md tcadin S o! U»e Heavy irafhc BUI, said it was introduced in response to applications from local 1m- - dies and petitions of drivers oi vehicles Provision was made to protect < J*»l bodies roads from damage bv vehicles. On the other hand, Complaint was. made by drivers of vehicles that «>ey were taxed by every local bodv . orer whose roads they travelled, and this was a heavy tax* driving many fflen out of business. The Bill provided ttot a Magistrate shall abortion among the various local authorities eou- " ? , e amoua t of license fee for a .vehicle in such portions as he thinks his decision to be" final and con-

The Hon. Jenkinson expressed surpnseatthe introduction of such an imiwtaimi measure so late in tie session. .J?" H ?? - . Anst *y tl,o "g ht ""> mentan would be very harsh. • The Hon. Kelly said not a single loH»l body in Taranaki would adopt the provisions of the BUJ. Tie second reading was agreed to Had the Bill referred lo the Agricultn«W and Stock Committee, and the Poiracil adjourned at 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. The Honse met at 2.30 p.m On resuming, the Hamilton Domains' Bffl and Counties' Amendment Bill Were passed. The Harbors' Amendment Bill was read a second time The Council rose at 9.30 p.m.

i HOUSE OF RKITJiSENTATIVES. The Speaker intimated that after today the Standing Oruenj wouio. ue suspended during the rest of the session to enable Bills to be put througn all stages at one sitting, and to uuvbje/ new business to be taken after 12.30.. PUBLIC WORKS ESTIMATES. On tile motion to go into Column;.. of Supply on the Public Works Estimates, Mr. Massey said the most important feature of the Public Works Statement was unquestionably the announcement of the early completion of the North Island Main trunk railway. - It was a line destined to be a very great success, and opva up magnificent country betweea Waiouru and Xaunia- ] rami. The most notable fact iu regard to other lines was the very small amount in many cases in proportion to the total vote. The votes for the North Island Trunk and Midland had oeen excedeed. Why, then was not the same possible regarding other lines! The same undcr-expeudturu occurred h regard to roads. Taking ordinary loads, tourist roads and goldlields wads, the total vote had been under spent by £103,331. What, he asked, was the good of voting large sums if there was no intention of spending them! It only meant disappointment to settlers who we're entitled to belter treatment. Moreover, it detracted a grea't deal from the value of tile propo,«al to spend .£250,000 0 n roads. The Government's behaviour in regard to these votes savors of Bnd he felt little faith was to be" at-" -taclred to these election promises, which cropped up with clock-work regularity ttvery three years. The fast was that Parliament had no real knowledge of what was done with the money voted. Since the House had given over control «f the pursu to Ministers, it had ceased to be a dignified legislative assembly, and had become nothing more than a great unwieldy road board. He contended that the local government system should be revised, and local'bodies •given what the late Premier called as-

itrred finance. Speaking as a representative of a backblocks constituency, he felt strongly that settlers in the backblocks were not getting what they ««rc Untitled to. Referring to the appropriations for the year 1008-9, he .-aid ftese amounted to two and a-half millions, which was a very large sum for a small country, and we should be careful of extravagance. Mr. Rutherford failed to see what Mr. Massey had to complain of. An analysis of the road votes showed that of the total vote of £OOO.OOO, Auckland had secured no less than"£23s.ooo, while the Xorth Island had secured the large bulk of the total appropriations. The Hon. G. Fowlds said wtteu members referred to sums voted for Auckland province, they ought to bear in mind that they were dealing with a province comprising a quarter of the area and a quarter of ine population .of New Zealand. Mr. Massey's contention that Parliament had lost control Of the purse was hardly borne out bv the keen criticism of'the Estimates.' heard every year in the House. Mr, Hemes said if, as the Minister declared, Auckland was a quarter of the whole Dominion, it ought to get a quarter of the total votes, but nothing like tha sum was appropriated for' Auckland. He regretted to see no money on the EsUmims lor tho utilisation of water power. With regard to the extra vote of £250,000 for backblocks' roads, it was to be observed that tie votes for other roads lad been curtailed by something like £175,.000, so that the real extra vote for ijroads this year was only £75,000. Frequemty, not half the votes were spent bn roads, the rest going in salaries, Bad he objected to the inclusion of Balaries and surveying fees in the road .votes. This was especially hard on ■backblock roads, owing to" the heavy travelling expenses. Mr. James Allen asked why tiro C.overnment does not expend the sums allocated by Parliament.

The House resumed a 7.30 p.m. Mr Allen, continuing, said there was »nly one of two possible explanations for the non-exipenditure of votes—either Parliament was asked to vote too much, or the administration of the Department was bad. Referring to expenditure, he said it had increased by over two millions annually since 1891. This was largely, if not entirely, on borrowed money, a, stato of things wHiieh conld not go on. It was shameful that 110 per cent, of the railway vote should be spent on the Midland railway, which we had had to take over from English speculators, while the Otago Central had apparently been dropped out of existence. Too Premier twitted Mr. Allen with anomalies. In his speech he had complained of under-expenditurc, and yet from tile first page of the Financial Statement he would find the Rovern-

meat's average expenditure was over i£255,000 a year more than t/ie average expenditure of the Keddon Government. Then Mr. Allen complained that expenditure was going up liy leaps and bounds, but hv overlooked the increase of revenue. Referring to the Opposition criticism of extravagant expenditure on public buildings, members usually did so except so far as their own districts were concerned, but with respect to the latter they wore ever knocking at the Treasury door. Continuing, Sir Joseph said the Opposition criticism in the baekbloeks roads was unfair and misleading. The fact was . tibat the Government had clearly earmarked a quarter of a million annually for backblocks' settlers, and when it was stated tliat with the amounts in the Supplementary estimates, £725,000 was proposed to be expended on roads and bridges, he asked what more was expected of the Government? lieferling to tourist roads. Sir Joseph said •they were) always built with full regard to the requirements of settlers. As regards the Otago Central railway, ! £1,279,800 had already been spent on that -work, mid he wished to say that a great deal of railwav development in all parts of tli? enuniry would be required fo r m an y yeais to mine. As to the borrowing'p'olii-y «4>f tlie Government, he refused to tell Hie House 'now the Government was raising money. It ■would be wrong ( 0 do hut everything in connection with loan operation was most satisfaetorv. Conclnd- , rag, he said the Public Works p.iliev was progressive, and was developing fhe country in the best interests of ?H concerned. Mr. \V. Fras<. r lirs . a )lial 1>li( . works should be carried out wiih mo-e outside capital. We were rolvin-r too much on onr o-.rn capital. Dr. Chnpnel lhoi, sn t the -turrtv old pioneers of the South had a prior . claim to public monorv over the new- ..'-.: comers of tho North."

The Hon. C. Mills, speaking in all probability for the last time .in the House, urged the completion of the Main' Trunk lines as a statesmanlike I policy. Mr. Hanan looked upon the whole dubate as a demand for increased borrowing, and wondered where it was "o- I 'ng to land us. ° Mr. Sidey advocated irrigation in Otago, and the prosecution of the Otago Central railway. The Hon. W. Hall-Jones said the Government had adopted a prudent policy. lit had started no new railways j n this Statement, but was vigorously drivin" to completion the railways on hand" Next year, only ten iteiiis would remain on the list, arid then the Government could consider what line to prosecute, whether Otago Central or ' Auckland-East Coast. He justified' the Government's construction policy, , ln d ■ said in a few years the reproductive i powers of tlie railways would be enor- J mous. The Hon. Hall-Jones said, ex- j I'epting the Main Trunk, more mileage ; had been opened by him on the Ota«o i Central than 071 any other line. * I Mr. Alison continued the debate I (Lvft Sitting). q