PARLIAMENT.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 17 October 1913, Page 5

PARLIAMENT.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. (By Telearash —Frtu Association.) WELLINGTON, Last Night. "Hie Legislative Council met at 2.30 p.m. The Hon. H. D. Bell introduced the Fublio Wolrks Amendment Bill, which was read a first time. The Council theft went into oommit r tee on the Hauraki Plains Amendment Bill, which was reported with one small amendment. The Council also passed the Public Trust Office Amendment Bill through committee, with the minor and consequential amendments recomendeid by the Statutes Revision Committee. By 15 votes to 9, the Council decided not to give the Public Trust power to establish a branch beyond New Zealand. , • < The Council then adjourned: till Wednesday next. v HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. The House of Representatives met at 2.30 p.m. , ( COOK ISLANDS. The Coo# Islands Government Act A mendment'Bill was read a first time. THE NEW ZEALAND LOAN. Sir Joseph Ward asked the Minister of Finance if he could give- the House any information concerning the newspaper cable announcing the flotation of a New Zealand £3,500,000 loan. ; The Hon. James Allen stated that the cable.was quite correct. The! loan was floated to redeem debentures coming due, and for other purposes. Two loans would fall due in November, aggregating £200,000. Half of that amount would be provided for out of the loan just raised. The loan was raised at a discount of £1 10s per cent., with a currency of ten years, with-a right of conversion into four per cent, subscribed stock. A greater portion of the loian would be con-, verted' this year at 101. Ninetytwo per cent, of the. loan had been taken up by the underwriters. A portion of the loan would be used for the purchase of some of the debentures csctoiing due in July, 1914, the amount of which was four and a-half millions. What could not be used for purchasing debentures coming due next year Would be temporarily invested for the purpose of redeeming other loans ccVming due. Two were due in 1914—one in January, and the other in December. One was for four and a half millions, and the other was the unconverted portion of the five million loan. Before the end of next yei.i', the Minister of Finance would need to go on the London market for something like twelve millions. He had considered it unwise to ask for twelve millions in one year. Therefore, he determined to anticipate the loans coming due in July, amounting to £3,400,000. The balance svould be raised next year. That amount did not include the amount obtained from the. Post Office, but was for four and a half millions corning due in July, the loan raised about a year ago, and the three and a half million loan which fell due about the end of 1914. Besides that, there was about another million in Lopdbm, and the annual requirements. It would be impossible to give the cost of the loan until tho conversion took place. The ost of the last three millions loan was £4 os 6d. The balance of the afternoon was taken up by the discussion of Ministerial answers to questions.