THE Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, JULY 25, 1891. POLITICAL NOTES.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2232, 25 July 1891, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, JULY 25, 1891. POLITICAL NOTES.

We have received private information to the effect that there is a majority in Parliament in favour of conpensation to publicans in the event of their licenses being taken away fj'om them, without cause. A considerable amount of dissatisfaction was caused by Mr Seddon's action with regard to Mr .Jackson Palmer's bill. This was a bill which was brought in by Ml- Jackson Palmer for the purpose of repealing the Act under which the liailway Commissioners have sole and full control of tlie Bailvvays. In addition to

"repealing that Act, it placed the Commissioners in the position of Civil Servants, under Ministerial control. When this bill was introduced Mr" Seddon opposed it, and several of the members thought if the Government intended to vote against it they ought to have made their intention 'mown before the bill was introduced, We fully agree with this view of the case, and quite • sympathise with the dissatisfaction of the supporters of the measure. They had no right to treat their own supporters in the way they did. However, the breach has been healed up, and a Ministerial statement with regard to the Commissioners may be soon expected.

One pleasant feature of the present session is that Sir George Grey has settled down into a thoroughly consistent Government supporter. The Opposition have been predicting all sorts of things so far as he was concerned, but the veteran has completely disappointed them.

The Payment of Members Bill is sure to pass, and it ought to have been passed long ago. There has been nothing which required legislating on more. Double sessions have almost unvariably taken place in every election year with the result that the. members receive, double honorarium. This has been the cause of much annoyance, in and out of Parliament. It was frequently said that members forced on double sessions so as to get double pay. By paying the members a stated salary of so much a year, this will be put an end to, and a very good thing too. This will noL come

into force this session, but it will probably apply to next year. The amount which will bo proposed as the annual salary of a member is £24.0. ft is not at all too.mueh, but we think the present Parliament ought not to ask for more than £2OO a year, considering the efforts which have been put forth to cut down the expenditure.

A great deal of noise has been made about a Mr Stevens, who was -dismissed from the Civil Service owing to retrenchment. Mr Stevens had been a long time in the service, and in a few months more would have been entitled to a pension. Mr McKenzie was violently attacked for dismissing Mr Stevens until the time which would entitle him to a pension had arrived. Mr McKenzie, however, explained that unless he broke the law he could not allow either compensation or pension to Mr Stevens, because he became a bankrupt over 20 years ago, and was never reappointed. The Minister was violently attacked for going back so far in the man's history, but Mr McKenzie had the best of the argument. The law was against Mr Stevens, and Mr McKenzie could not go beyond it. The Government, however, are going to act generously to Mr Stevens, and will, we believe, endeavor to get Parliament to agree to giving him a pension or allowance of some kind.