HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4514, 23 June 1883, Page 2

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

-Mr Mottaomery asked Major Atkinson to" firing on Supply at once, as he intended to imW a Vote of censure on the Govern,mw in connection with .the Imprest obtained on the" last day of the fioaneial period. *'■ ■"' # ' ■ . , ;.;" . Major Atkinson said he had intended to make an explanation on the subject, .but as Mr Montgomery was iv such a hurry he would wait (tad' hear what he had to say, v; He moved the, postponement; of all businesa down tp Supply. . r , ' '*' At Mr Montgomery's request, the Auditor»j3enerars memo, on the subject'of the Imprest was read by the 'Oierk of the Honse'as follows:—The Honi the Colonial Treasurer: lam uneible to sign this requi sition without pointing out that it involves a grave evasion of the law.' • It is: not an infraction of the law such that I should be justified in declining; to issue the money, but it evades the clear intention of the Act. The ninth section of the Public;llevenues Act, 1882, provides for the oxpenses for two months after the end of the financial year, authorising the Colonial Treasurer to issae and pay moneys- during Buch two months, subject to certain conditions. The effect of the present requisition is to draw out on the 31st May, the last day on which I can consistently with the law issue any money till Parliament meets,' the" sum of £192,000 from the public accounts, and place it as an imprest in the hands of the Paymaster General, so as, to carry on the expenditure until the meeting of Parliament. If such a step can be taken in an emergency arising from the Parliament not being called together within, the time for which supplies are provided, I cannot but point out that the same course might be adopted bj the Government at any time and for any purpose, and the whole expenditure of public money be changed - from that of direct payment to one ot imprest payment, and to the old system of audit after payment, a system which it was. the whole, objeot of the £evenues Act to abQlish. It is true the law puts no splisiuc limit to the issue of imprests, but they have hitherto been treated as exceptional, and used when direct payment could not be made without inconvenience to- service. But the Audit Office has always felt it its duty to remonstrate | against tLe issue of moneys on imprest for payments' which might have been made directly fronvthe Treasury. I' therefore feel that the issue of>th|| money, which I have no power to refuse, disclosed a mode iv which the clear iutontioa of Parliament is being and may" be at any time evaded, and atoney expended in a manner which the Audit;pffice most have declined to sanction had the claim been presented to it before the expenditure took place. As tbef point is one setiously affeoting the manner in which the duties 6(' the Controller and Auditor General are to, be; fulfilled; I have* the honoV recpectfully to request that this memo., together with the; requisition to which it, refers, may be laid before the {Parliament' as soon' as it meets.—James Ebwikn| -PiTZOBBAXD, Gontroller -and Auditoir|) General P.S.—I Bhoald also point out that when the [Paymaster submits bi| vouchers for credit, and it appears by tui receipts that payments have been made 1 before the meeting of Parliament, it mty

be tbe duty of .ihe - «dit Office to refute to T(COKni|es..»aoh payments, or to relieved Ae|^l^«i ; t«i46hneral without the ex pres* sanction of P|r!iarnent; on the krr»an3 thst the law e^Sresaly forbids, not only tlw : i^sae, bat also the payments of taoneysg «f ei^Sllst May. The papers isjill :,Be jlaift h^forf Parliament a» rer xjueeted.' -*• TBtrtS. Dick (for?? Colonial ;. SV«t May, 1883"—MrMontgomerysaidhe '-fit as. s only doing his tiutyin endeavouring to maintain the control of Parliamentbrer the public parse by v OTHHriWj^'^ Wore the House. A few nights asjo, he pointed • out that the expenditure since the Slat of c last day, withdrawing £190,00Q «8 imprest from the Controller, fhe (terms of condemnation used by the Controller gjjrere" sufficiently -sever©'. •£ It was no wonper, ag he was?* ParlmmentityV not a Goterument officer. The had b«a^a»kedtolay th» memo, before P«lii. merit, and "Ministers had promiied to do this, yet they bad kept thte pmper back from the knowledge, of the House until fcfter the reply to (tie Address Had been passed. Had this not been done it would have beenlth» tfuif hi tfce;Qpt>O|ltiotf to havei „ movisd an amendment; fon vth% reply; it waa now their duty loas^fctli^ Hau»e to^xpress an opinion atQ ; pce,iri»f|^r4^ ing the transaction.* ■ JS#. ,■ the^Btonse:jp»s)»ed. ) over such 'Without^noticed tha^ ' control*^ tfio • :p$ b'lie' «prfrs;#nflf^4l:«"^*;'l p's^edijfixwa^tba ;;,H«'^li^pjmifttWt, amnt whetheripe jnotion h* was abodt to pTo^.^e^l^^it.w^fUe* o#T«t>6rirwaT heluia deme Ins duty in Iftheflod^ ia ant paa^ihe motion tfcaeonnfcrycootf not then ittdfeb«tw««tfc«Tre«tnrtrani tbo« who triad to-do their dntTi. K i!iriW the pnblw purt*. H» ino'Wdilwt: tbii Hot^ disapp*©»to of th« ifttdbct of ' tile Miw»t»y « obliaiii allSrest for isdesei^ngofde^t^formorlt^nr memo, -of; vtliiß;'':;OM^l^'^«^B||H^ fmisi^jM»ls||ii;; !t|^ina^l|!^|^ ; tti«" Colonial Treasttifßr^:^'•;,!i--. IQii?iiofe.vi^ r:-^^' V;: Major Atkir,Bo«-a*id Mr MonlKomtry 'ended-by entreating »«mb>Mnot^otafc« ;a party Haw of th*matt4W, but the orti. 1 m?y,io«irti«», of anking bini to:«p|^^uaj ■him. One beforeaehaZWithlhToon- > onn|iaoef of :^9i|^!^ler,^>i!ii^;^!ii': I matter of £S6ogOi^^Q:,deiiM> ria^uui^ ', eradintf the le«er of the law i» Ofder to : carry oat his poioti He *Ja« cmMm4on )to Parliament when it met, islrt' f^ a cofimittee to invfßtifatc the sulrj»et, aittf" i infited the Houm to pass a bill of mdiii;- ---; Wellington be woold not, a. Mr Die! had done, haT« proaiied to liftiM* paper on the table, but would ha»e told the Contwlier, as an officer of the Htase, it Was his duty to report direct to the Home if he had any complaint againsc the GrOTeramenL He keliered ha h«4 brought tho papar downts^ the propar time, bat had only don« ao baaiue bis oollaigttiv had promised. He denied tbera hadObeen any evasion of Uia law; tha CroTernaeot had simply euareitiHi aniisi ■. ' cretion entrusUd to then* by the,. Hbuae. 'Fully^bne-t)i|r^ reTenae : wa"s'-mLteay#': «i>enivon,^TapT|ff without pre-audit.^ Hiid he liked he eoul* have got this money without a word beinir said, but he wished:^tp~;do ,it honestly. Such a power as he exercised mu»t b« held by Government if the service was to be carried on. The more be saw of: the. present system of control the more he was convinced that it was entirely useless for practical good; the money was voted and placed in the hands of the Paymaster General as imprest; the claims were sent into the various departments, and the vouchers sent to the audit; then it cameback to the Treasury, when it was sent to the Control Department for approval, and df'ithere was- enough to* itho credit of the vote it was then paid. That;wasTthe ordiiiaryimethod with this money and the claims on it,— the only difference was. that the Controllercould not see each iteut charged to its particular vote. Parliament had not in. any way lost control of the.money. If the money had not been got under imprest it would have had to be simply charged as unauthorised expenditure;' every half penny of it might have been spent before the 31st May. If the Controller was to determine when money was to be spent on imprest, and when not.it would be icnppssible to carry on the publio service ; the House must trust to its officers, the Minis* iers. If they had not exeroised their discretion as they did, they would have had to call Parliament together a fortnight earlier, when the buildings we:e unfit for occupation. He left it to the House to say whether Government h*d hot exercised its discretion wisely in the interests of the coun. try. He considered Mr Montgomery's haste in bringing this matter on without awaiting his explanation was most unusual, and submitted with the utmost confidence to the judgment of the House.—Mr Holmes strongly condemned the conduct of Government as utterly illegal and unjustifiable.— Mr J. E. Brown considered the whoie thing a mere quibble, the,imprest became expenditure as soon as it was drawn, and was so within the law. - The whole audit system had been shown by the Civil Service Commission to be a sy ste m of cuprico. Great public inconvenience would have arisen had not Government acted as they did.—Mr Fish very: warmly condemned the conduct of Government. The question was not had the money been spent; but had the law been violated P The House must, on the issue raised, censure either the Government or the Controller. The Treasurer's conduct was disgustingly autocratic when confident of support Iby a subservient majority.—Mr Shephard said this matter was but| a fresh phase of the s>'.d dispute; mere questions of form between the Treasury and Audit Departments,—the latter always trying to assert itself as above the Minis* try and ihe House. Tbe Controller, how e»er, in this case did not even charge any breach in the law, and quite enough had been said, he thought, about the supposed " effraction." It was a mare's next. Mr M. W. Green thought a clear evasion of the law had been committed, and of such a oharacter as io demand theoensure of the - House. He said this, although he had no desire to see an? change of Ministry, as since last session he had been in a transition state, and was prepared to give them la general support in all things he deemed Iright. He looked on the Controller's pproteat as impelled by a strong 'sense '. The V Treasurerl^' conduct Ku utterly illegal and unoonititutionaL Ra<e Bad broken the law, although not lifipraiiy psnonal adTautigt, »od pun-

sHm^nt should follow it He feared ,bat the present Government had rery little •respect for the law. Last se^HOD they had connived at * he escape or an officer who had com-* vitteri embp»lement, and the bail bonds iad never been estreated.—Major Atkinlon dented both statements.—Mr Greta leclined to give names.—Mr Bryce said he accusations were not true; he eallett )n MrGWen to prove bis stiiements, off lie under the imputation of having made a *rosi chsrge which bad no foundation. . [fit'.tm pmrrd th* &mernw*>t;*mfr jonaived»t the escape of a criminal 4 he; would not;r£Baain an boar on thosebenches but Mr (Jreon'fcoald sot prove what wasnot true.—lff* Green tiiH" Tie* wpttlcl give the name in private tot the Native Minister, add it would then be for the Government to prove they bad nojti OOtt"' nivedat the escape. Mt'Bb*lr'mf^nQ i ioubt the ease referred to wajr thpt-of Mr >- Battray. and Mr Green bad brought it np to show that Government! yielded to the solicitations of hit Mends, i Prodi bia personal knowledge, . b* ' t*ew / two parsons who had interested theaa*> ' [ salves in Batlray's favour,' a»i fcfcete: were Sir G. Whit more and Jtfr^Bheelitntl leading members* of , the Opposition. flattray was bailed ia the u«art waf, and those gentlemen became snreneji for mm. Ho escaped, and the sureties bad been estreated and'the penalty paid, and an - ( extradition'warrant-bed been iiqgieclfgfc 1 " fiatlray's *pr*,9t|*iHieosfeF fjopWl> \ £ne mafiv jßuoaTiuii QjHßrvi''iMßio #swVsj^^bbK'> 'aetlbn w»* le^. : H» hals JB^Jißb|[ —Mt(- StmtaTA* ■dawa^Bst 'tUHs^Hi a atriosis btcMr alsiaicS sßHßßV>isiß)lltfNKflHKantk«ail3rjyaSilS^^ «ZiSP > BatMNsal^anHU^ «^lMlf 'f'^^'J^'l'lflt^ifMP''''^" fact oo((M to {Man| 3Bie«> '■■atatewfM H|a) Governor .t Bp-rt-U;f»*#ii aa|ja^|ajt«WH ♦ llswfc AVskCj^- l^^^^JHswWWy**l^^Pß^P t| P^H^* fln^^Ttf^ teoa<bioa» wSM^Ja antinaM »* great br.M (U^rfie*^iloajbMl U», , • > I The Hu»l%ia|Bt} itinMtrt the S,^k«r 4y fc»aMaJw> chair. whick«aa crrfrd by 4| to IjFmpaiflfcpft^ motioß boioja; ih«f«fov»loaC r ' |Pivi9ioir,-AT«B. #: Meaan AllwrtitUt. Beethan, Browo, J. E., Bryc«, Buflfcaaa*. W 0. Coooolly. Di^k* |) P d ß «kn. F«M«s;ri'iff«rard. J.,H»iu>ii|, Huwt, Johaitoa W I|^|Bpul Lee, L'^vwiUni. McKoasje, MeXtwraitliF. W.. M«iJ]^^i4(3rel»oo,Munro.OOaJlaglta*. fiaafock, Pearson, Petrie, Pottle* abarpWi.Bte- ? ah j,»^'BMpW(ff|r, Suffon, owanaon, ThomtSn* , 'mimbfe; Waft. tVhyte J C, Witsoa, and \Vvnn VVilhams. 4 Noe<«, 29 : Messrs Barron, Bathgate, Brackeu.Buchanm J.,Cad'man, Biniela, Duucan, Feldwiek, J^ish, George, Green M. W., Grey, Harris, Holmes, Hurstlioush, Hatctuson, Ivess, Joyce, WTsjfi' : auJrert', MoKenzie J., Montgosaery^ Pyko, Seddon, Smith,Btewart, Te Wheoro, Thoaip-,on J. W., Tola, and White

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