PARLIAMENT, 1910.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 210, 14 December 1910, Page 3

PARLIAMENT, 1910.

SUMMED UP BY ME. MASSEY. Auckland, December 12. Some remarks on the recent session of Parliament were mad? by Mr. W. F. Massey, Leader of the Opposition, in con- , versition with a reporter here. "I think it will be found," said Mr. Massey, "when some of the new laws come into operation, that it would have been much better if Parliament had considered them more closely, and examined them more thorough!v before they wer? finally agreed to. Too much waste of time at the first, and too much hurry at the last are not conducive to satisfactory' legislation. The borrowing proposals, and the consideration of the Estimates occupied probably a lii'Je longer than usual, but the time is not wasted if the discussion enables the public to obtain n grasp of.the Government's administration ,and the colony's financial position. The debate on the Financial Statement was, for some reason, however,' dragged out to a most unusual length, and many other subjects were discussed besides finance." Referring to his. want-of-conftdeiice motion on the land question (debated early in the session), Mr. Massey stated that, when he moved it. he was of opinion that the Government would drdp the Land Bill, and events proved that he was right. There wa3 the usual increase of taxation this time in the shape of income tax, the greater part of which he had no doubt would find its way back to the producer, through additional profits being demanded by those who pay the tax in the first instance. "One of the events of the session," continued Mr. Massey, "was the consideration of the Tline charges, but, as the proceedings of the committee and the debate in the House are still fresh in the minds of most people, it is scarcely necessary to refer to tbem, except just to Say that I am very glad to find that, in the opinion of a huge majority, the result has fully justified Mr. Hine in the course which he adopted. "I do not say .that the whole of the legislation agreed to last session is worthless. On the contrary, a number of very useful amendments have been made, but I do say this: That the proportion j df useful legislation to the worthless or unnecessary is in the ratio of Shakespear's 'Ha'penny-worth of bread to an i intolerable deal of sack." j

In the course of an editorial dealing •with some work of the session the Wellington Post, an Opposition journal, remarks: "So far as the positive aspects of the session are concerned, we cannot see that the Opposition Party has achieved anything commensurate with the hopes which it formed immediately after the general election. Mr. Massey is not by nature querulous, but he appears, unfortunately, to be possessed by the idea that scolding is a necessary part of the equipment of a party leader, and that small differences demand the same shrill tone as large ones. The impression produced is accordingly one of nagging, which seriously detracts from the clTect of just criticism directed to the more important issues."