PARLIAMENT.

Taranaki Daily News, 21 December 1921, Page 5

PARLIAMENT.

YESTERDAY’S SITTING. THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. EXTENSION OF MORATORIUM. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. The Legislative Council met at 2.30 p.m. The Mortgages and Deposits Extension Bill was received from the House and read a first time. Sir Francis Bell moved the adoption of new standing orders. The Hons. VV. Earnshaw and M. Cohen objected to the power to use the closure. The Hon. Sir Thos. Mackenzie felt an opportunity should be given to every member to speak; the use of the closure in England had led to abuses. He moved the deletion of the clauses giving this power. The Hon. O. Samuel, who compiled the new orders, said the power proposed was less than contained in the old orders. The amendment was lost by 25 votes to 3, and the motion was adopted. Mr. Speaker publicly thanked Mr. Samuel''for his work, and said the Council now had a set of standing orders probably better than those of any other self-governing Dominion. The Wellington City Empowering Bill, enabling the corporation to issue a loan at G instead of GJ per cent., was put through all stages and passed. Sir Francis Bell moved the second reading of the Mortgages and Deposits Extension Bill. He said he did not want the Government to bear any odium in connection with the changes made in the original Bill. “Let there be no mistake, however, about the fact that the Government is no more convinced than its Attorney-General that its proposals were not far better than those in the Bill now before the Council,” he added. The proposals now before the Council would fairly meet the position, although they would not meet the objections made to previous legislation. He had felt it an immense compliment that those who objected to the Bill of 19211 had nothing better to •fail back upon than his own Act of 1919.

The Bill committed. Clause 10, dealing with the service of notice on a mortgagor or mortgagee, was amended to provide that service upon a mortgagor when he has executed a mortgage, and also upon such other person as appears by duly registered deed or instrument to be the owner of the property subject to the mortgage, shall be deemed sufficient service. Other amendments are in part 2 of the Bill, which k deals with deposits. On the clause prescribing conditions of extension words have been inserted to make it plain that the borrower must clear off the interest due up to the time of the commencement of the Act, and then commence the payment, of interest at GJ per cent, or such higher rate as has been contracted for. Sir Francis Bell stated that in cases where a contract for a lower rate existed at the commencement of the Act the borrower could not take advantage of that contract, but must pay 6J per cent. The Council altered the provisions as to the repayment of deposits by instruments where the total sum does not exceed £lOOO. Instalments are to be paid as follows: Five per cent, on April 1, 1922; 5 per cent, on July, 1922, and 10 per cent, on October 1, 1922. Where the sum exceeds £lOOO four instalments of 5 per cent, each are to be paid on July 1 and October 1, 1922, and January 1 and April 1, 1923. The Bill was passed. The Council rose at 9.15 p.m.

In the House of Representatives the Amendments made by the Legislative Council in the Mortgage and Deposits Extension Act were agreed to.

Most of yesterday’s sitting of the House, both afternoon and evening, was taken up with the debate on the meat pool scheme. The House rose at 12.10 a.m.