PARLIAMENTARY.

Thames Star, Volume XV, Issue 4898, 20 September 1884, Page 2

PARLIAMENTARY.

[Pee Peess Association.J

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Wellington, Last night. Mr Walker gave notice that country Volunteer corps be placed on a more satisfactory footing.'—Mr Seddon gave notice that vendors of patent medicines, tobaccos, etc., be licensed and the fees reserved for local revenue.

Replying to questions it was stated : A record of the traditions and language of the Chatham Island natives had been in hand since 1873, but had not been completed ; the compiler of the Maori traditions in New Zealand was paid £200 per annum, with a bonus of £500 on the com' pletion of the work ; Facilities similar to those enjoyed by European exporters in the transmission by post of foreign patterns and samples, would be provided for the New Zealand manufacturer.

The following Bills were read a first time:—False Notice of Births, Deaths, and Marriages; Dog Kegistration Act, 1880, further Amendment (Steward); to amend the Juries Act, 1880 (Grey). A Public Revenues Bill was introduced by message from the Governor, and ordered to be read on Tuesday. Sir Julius Vogel moved the second reading of the Parliamentary Honorarium and Privileges Bill. Mr Russell considered the amount, £210 per annum, too much, and would move its reduction by one-half when in Committee.—Sir Julius Vogel contended Jthat the amount was only fair and reasonable. Members who considered it too high had their remedy, and might, if they chose, leave the surplus in the hands of the Treasurer. The following Bills were also road a second time :—Public Health Act, 1879, Amendment; Slaughterhouse Act, 1877, Amendment. THE STATEMENT CRITICISED. On the motion for going into Committee of Supply, Major Atkinson said the Financial Statement showed no attempt to grapple with the difficulty of the financial position. Its chief aim was to make things pleasant, and avoid the real diffi* culties of the situation. The country was led to believe that a great disclosure was to be made of the conduct of the late Government, but instead of cursing that GoTernment, the Statement had blessed it by following in their lines, except in one cise. They entered their duties with the determination to expose their predecessors, but in not a single case had they shown j'any mismanagement or entanglement. At the outset the Treasurer stated tbat the history of the past year's finance had been already before tfae.m ; in other words, they were told that the late Government's estimates were accurate. There was a loan called the General Purposes Loan, of which £115,000 was to be used for buildings. Of this loan, £20,000 fell due in October; these debentures were hsld by the Public Trustee under arrangement that he Should hold them until the House met. That, together i with another small sum amounted to £120,000, yet not one word was said about it. Sir Julius Vogel was bound to tell them that these debentures were due, and others becoming due. Not a word was said about it. The great difficulty they | had to provide for was £150,000 floating debt. To meet this, why did he not retain the Property Tax? The answer was that to retain it as it was could not be pleasant, and it was his business to make all things appear so. Had the floating debt last year been treated as this year's was proposed to be, there would have been a surplus and not a deficit. Why did he not treat these two periods in the one way ? He (Atkinson) told them that he was prepared to make provision for the services of the year without further taxation, but that statement was received

as incredible. If they turned to the Estimates before them they would find that assertion was simply verified by the assertion of Sir Julius Vogel. The civil service proposals were nest referred to and discussed, he (Atkinson) contending that they were in all respects akin to hhi own. In the matter of education they had been told that they were to hare a better article at a cheaper rate, and yet not a single proposal in that direction was attempted. Then as regards railways, similar reform was to be wrought. The Government were surrounded by men who had made, so to speak, a life study of this subject, and what had they pro posed? INothing; no, nothing! The late Government had to be punished by Canterbury for this very sin, but that Government, very unlike the present, had the courage of its opinions, and made reforms when they said they were necessary. Altogether they would see that the exact lines of the late Government were being followed. That was all they had got by this change of Government. Now came the greatest entanglement of th* whole Statement, —the branch of the subject referring to loans. There was no criticising it, as it might mean something and might mean nothing. Why were they told that the permanent debt was to remain as it was, and yet at the same time told that it was to be increased by the amount of the sinking fund and the borrowing of other £3,000,000? Such ambiguity as that was most reprehensible, and should not exist in a statement of this importance. The various steps in the process of inscription of loans carried on during the time Vogel was one of the loan agents were minutely traced, and the various communications on the subject of inscription referred to, showing that ths Government had acted iv this matter in strict accordance witb the advice sent by the agents, of whom Vogel was one. That, he contended, was a complete justification for the only fault the late Government was charged with. If they had acted otherwise they most certainly would have incurred blame. They were told in one breath that the colony had been asleep during the past five years' administration, and in the next the Treasurer gave statistics to show that great commercial and public progress' had been made. If the colony during the next five years made the same progress, even under the magic wand of Vogel, they would have no reason to complain. If they remitted taxation, as was proposed to be done, he asked how they were going to provide for public buildings, and for educational buildings? Was that cost to be charged against the loan ? If not, what was it to be charged to ? The sinking fund was to be seized and taxation remitted—how then were these buildings and roads to be provided for P They were told that the country was groaning under taxation, and yet they were not told where the shoe pinched. If they were to relieve the country of £250,000 or £260,000 of taxation, they ought to hare been told where and upon whom this taxation fell, and who it was that demanded relief. The fact was that Sir George Grey saw the opportunity for sweeping away the Property Tax altogether, and substituting a Land Tax, and it was Grey who was master of the situation, and he merely made use of the Government for that purpose. It was not a small Land Tax, but one that would lead us on to the nationalisation of the land ; if a -^d was not enough, he would let us have a Id, and so on. He was challenged, but he was I only quoting from the hustings speeches of members on the ether side of the House. If, as he (Vogel) had stated, they and their posterity would approve of interest being charged on railways under construction, why does he not do it? Then they were told that 1|- millions were to be borrowed ? How was it to be spent ? When they got the Public Works Statement they would learn. They were told that his scheme of finance had broken down. He asked, How? adding that he contended that it had been a marked success. He denied that great waste had been going on. When the 1^ million loan came down he could assure the Treasurer they would insist on having the works all scheduled, and on knowing at what rate the expenditure was to go on. The only difference between the present and the late Government proposals was that the latter held its band, and when it was to proceed they were carefully watching their opportunity for getting quit of the sinking fund, and all unbiassed persons would say they had acted wisely. The present Government rushed in, and were going to seize the sinking fund, and that in the face of the fact that they were going into the loan market to borrow 3§ millions of money. The operation would damage their credit in London to a far greater extent than the life proposed to be given by the proposed reduction of taxation. After all that had been said for years by members of the present Government about the question of local government, now they merely talked about a royal Commission to inquire into the subject. The fact was, that this was just another device to gloss things over and make them pleasant. This and other important subjects were conspicuous for their omission, and when they were taxed on the subject the want of time was pleaded. The real fact was that their great object was to make things pleasant, or, in the words of the book of Common Prayer, their language was, "Give peace in our time, O Lord." The Statement was pleasant to the eye, but it would prove gall and wormwood to the taste.

Immediately Major Atkinson finished, Mr Moss rose and moved, " That in the existing condition of the finances of the colony it is not desirable to reduce the taxation unless there be a corresponding reduction in the expenditure of the Government of the colony." Sir Julius Vogel characterised the speech of the late Premier as that of an old scold, and one w.jo lamented that, he had not brought down the same proposals himself. The amendment moved by the member for Parnell was a suprise to him, and he (Vogel) was not sure that he had not been asked to move it. The dealings with the £20,000 referred to by Major Atkinson did not reflect credit on that gentleman; the late Government certainly had the courage of its opinions, and that to such an extent that the colony wanted a change. He defended his action in reducing the Property Tax, and there was rejoicing from one end of the colony to the other. The whole of the arguments of the late Treasurer had been such as to confirm the statement. If the late Treasurer had not forced Sir George Grey some time back to take 2£ millions, instead of a four million loan, the colony would have been in a better position at the present time. The member for Egmont had brought finances into such entanglement, that the House was unable to understand them. If the hon. gentleman thought he

wou'd frighten him (Vngd) lm was very much mistaken ; there was. he said, cvi dence from all parts of the colony that the proposals of the Government were favorably received. He characterised Major Atkinson as a baby in connection with finance.

Mr Wakefield said the Colonial Treasurer, instead of using arguments, called names, and his whole speech was ungenerous. With reference to the bonds for £20,000, which Sir J. Vogel had said were dishonored, he (the speaker) said if the Treasurer had not done anything more illegal with the bonds and debentures, he would not have erred to any extent. The whole principle of the Statement was borrowing. The hon. gentleman had something for everybody, but he (Walcefield) thought it was the most unsatisfactory Statement that had been delivered in the House. Sir J. Voeel came to the colony as a sort of " Paul Pry—hope I don't intrude—just looked in—off again tomorrow " air. Mr Wakefield ridiculed the exportation of frozen meat to the Indian Ocean and Arafura Sea, and also the intention to hold industrial exhibitions. There was, however, one thing they had in the Statement, and that was that: blocks of land were to be secured along the line of route of the North Island-Trunk-Rail-way. He hoped the Treasurer would give a guarantee to that effect, because speculators were already in the field. The House adjourned at 1 a.m.