EDUCATION.

Thames Guardian and Mining Record, Volume I, Issue 276, 27 August 1872, Page 3

EDUCATION.

Mr Swanson asked the Premier, Whether the Government will introduce an Education Bill this session, in terms of the recommendation made by the Public Petitions Committee ? The honorable member said be put the question in consequence of the long explanation given by the Premier the otliei day as to why the Government did not intend to bring in a general. Education Bill for the whole Colony this session. He quite admitted the force of one or two of the reasons given by the honorable gentleman, the principal one being that several Provinces wire perfectly well satisfied with their present system of education for youth, aud it was likely they would be very cautious in permitting that system t® be disturbed*lest they should get a worse one. The honor- ‘ able gentleman, however, had said that several Provinces bad exercised a considerable amount of energy latterly in the matter of education. He (Mr Swanson) wished to state to the House, as a fact, that the action taken by the General Governmont last session bad led to a great relaxation in the efforts made by the Provinces, —in one of them at any rate. Fully convinced that a general measure applicable to the Colony would be brought down this session, the Province of Auckland, which had previously made very considerable exertions, bad, during the recess, relaxed its efforts in the cause of education. The report of the Public Petitions Committee recommended that a Bill should be brought down by the Government, and passed by the Legislature, leaving it optional with the Provinces to avail themselves of its provisions; and he hoped that, in view of the action taken by the Government last session, which led to the positive belief on the part of every person in the Colony, that education would be the question of this session, this course would be adopted. There was one matter to which ho wished to draw the attention of the Government. The Act passed in the Province of Auckland gave considerable powers of rating, and the first person threatened to be sued under those powers was one of the principal General Government officers in the Province. His resistance compelled the School Board of the district to abandon any hopes of collecting a school rate. The rating clauses were now practically in abeyance, and the funds for education were being derived from school trusts, fees, and any money which the Provincial Council might vote in aid, while the action of the General Government last year had had the effect of stopping the passing of a Bill through the Provincial Council to remedy the defect. Mr Fox was not quite sure that he rightly apprehended the question. He gathered from what the honorable member bad stated, that the Province of Auckland, in consequence of the expectation that the General Government were about to introduce a general measure of education, bad not put the machinery which it already possessed into action. Mr Swanson.—No. Mr Fox.—Then he scarcely understood how any great inconvenience or relaxation of zeal could have occurred if the provincial laws still continued in force. If the Government had brought in a measure of the kind intended, it would not have been possible to bring it into operation for about twelve months; and ho presumed provision had been made in the Province for the continuanco of the present machinery during the reasonable interval that might be expected to elapse before the new Act could be brought into operation ; so that, although it had been decided not to introduce a Bill, no practical inconvenience ought to have arisen. The recommendation of the Public Petitions Committee did not fit in with tho circumstances ef the case. It was that an Act should be passed authorising the levying of rates for educational purposes, and that the adoption of such Act should be made optional with the several provinces. Now, the Province of Wellington last year passed an Act, which received the sanction of the Governor, empowering the levying of very heavy rates for education. The province of Otago years ago made provision for rating, although it bad never been enforced, as tho province preferred to vote a large sum for education. It would seem, therefore, that some provinces already possessed such powers and others not, in consequence of their Acts on the subject having been de dared ultra vires. The fact, however, of some provinces having passed Acts on the subject which were not ultra vires, showed that they bad power to provide for rating, and as the General Government bad determined, after careful thought, to leave the whole question in the bands of the Provincial Governments, such, being the general desire, it would be a pity to initiate piece-meal legislation for the purpose of giving Provincial Governments the power of levyiug rates, which it appeared they already possessed. However, he should be happy to take counsel with the honorable member for Newton, or with other honorable members, and if they could satisfy Dim that necessity existed for the introduction of such an interlocutory measure as this would be, the Government would be quite prepared to give it consideration.