PARLIAMENT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 122, 1 September 1910, Page 5

PARLIAMENT.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. By Telegraph. —Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. PURE MILK. In the Legislative Council this afternoon the debate on the Hon. Dr. Co..ins' motion for further legislation to ensure pure milk supply was continued by the Hon. C. l\l. Luke, who urged that further information should (be given to mothers as to the importance of pure milk for infants. He believed that with the more general use of milking machines and proper instructions in sterilising, the danger from impure milk would be reduced to a minimum. The Hon. Mr. McCardle pointed out the difficulty of keeping milking machines clean, as parts were made of rubtber, which would not stand the necessary heat for the purification of milk. There was much need for expert supervisors at the proposed central depot, and an officer employed to see milk delivered to the people in a pure condition. The Hon. Messrs. Sinclair and Samuel averred that the present law was sufficient, if it were properly administered. Mr. Anstey said there was nothing to show that existing legislation was defective.. The Hon. Messrs. Baillie and Loughnan also spo'ke on the motion. The debate was adjourned. CRIMES BILL AMENDED. The Council then went into committee on the Crimes Bill, as amended by the Statutes Revision Committee. The main alterations made were: that a judge may direct, as part of a sentence, that a prisoner may be detained for Reformative purposes, for any term up to ten years, or, without imposing any prior term of imprisonment, a prisoner may be forthwith committed to prison for reformative purposes for a terjn not exceeding ten years. A similar amendment was made in the clause giving magistrates power to impose a reformative sentence for three years. In the Prisons Board clause, the number and personnel of the Board was altered by increasing the .Board to not more than seven persons, and by eliminating the words, '"permanent officers of the public service." The Board clause relating to wages for labor credited to prisoner was altered from a mandatory one to a permissive one. The- Bill was reported with amendments, and the Council rose.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. ' ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS. < In the House of Representatives - this afternoon, replying to a question, the , Minister stated that in the event of the Prime iMinister being invited to attend the Imperial Conference next year, it is hoped arrangements will be made to enable him to do so; should an opportunity , occur, Sir Joseph Ward would be glad to enable tihe House to discuss the allimportant question of Imperial unity, which was the most important one to be dealt with at the next Conference; that if any American combination should en,deavor to control the Dominion meat market, the House would be consulted as to whether the whole export meat trade ought to be nationalised; that the Prevention of Trusts Bill will be introduced at an early date; that serious consideration be given to the question of introducing legislation placing the control of primary, technical and secondary education in the hands of education boards, which, would involve a material change in the method of electing education boards. After the usfial discussion on replies to questions, ths House went into committee on the Public Debt Extinction Bill, and the House rose at 5.30 p.m. PUBLIC! DEBT EXTINCTION. In the evening the House went into committee on the Debt Extinction Bill.! On Mr. Allen's suggestion, the Premier promised to insert a proviso for placing the accounts of the fund before Parliament. Clause 8 was amended on the motion of Sir Joseph Ward to provide that a certificate of the total amount at the ■end of each financial year be furnished ' by the Controller and Auditor-General. to the Minister, and the following newl sub-clause '(c) was added to the clause,' "In calculating the amount of the pub-' lie debt, accumulations of sinking funds shall not be deducted therefrom." Clause 1 24 was amended to kicludte a proviso for placing] accounts before, Parliament as suggested by Mr. Allen. Mr. Newman moved a new clause to the effect that the sum provided Iby section 11 of the Bill to be paid out of fhe Consolidated, Fund, shall be paid ts the Public Trus-' tee instead of to the Superintendent of the State Guaranteed Advances Office, and that the sum so paid shall be applied by him to the extinction of the public debt. On a division, the amendment was 1 lost by 47 to "21. I The Town Boards Amendment Bill was' then taken in committee. , i Mr. Buddo moved a number of amend- i ments regulating the exercise of power I by boards under a special order, which I , were carried, and the Bill passed through j committee. The Stone Quarries Bill, in committee, I met with considerable opposition to the' general principles of the Bill, Mr. Fisher j moving to report progress. j Mr. Fisher subsequently withdnew the ' motion to report progress. I | Sir J. G. Ward replying to the critic- J | ism of Opposition members, said he had received no protest from public bodies] in his district against.the Bill. He was surprised that a measure having as its l object thfe preservation of human life' should meet with such opposition. He! could not believe that publip bodies! were opposed to the Bill on account of, the few paltry pounds it would cosi' them. | MOISTURE IN BUTTER. Mr. Okey asked the Minister to-day whether it is his intentiop to the Dairy Industry Act this session so as to empower graders of butter for export to withhold from shipment any butter found to contain over 16 per cent, of moisture, the per cent, allowed by the British Board of Trade. The reply wag that in the opinion of the Government it is not considered necessary to amend the Dairy Industry 1 Act on the lines indicated in the honourable gentleman's question. THE OIL INDUSTRY. Mr. Okey asked whether the Minister's attention had been drawn to the cable whiell shows the assistance given to the oil industry by the Commonwealth Government. The Minister replied that his attention had been drawn to the cable referred to. The Government of this Dominion has been offering a bonus of £(V2oO for the first 500.000 gallons of refined oil for some time past.