LAND SALES BILL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 21 August 1943, Page 2

LAND SALES BILL

THE COMMITTEE STAGE ANOTHER APPEAL BY MR HOLLAND. A NUMBER OF AMENDMENTS. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON. This Day. When the House resumed in the afternoon the Prime Minister moved for urgency for the Servicemen's Settlement and Land Sales Bill and indicated that the House would sit right through till the measure was passed. The urgency motion, which was challenged by the Opposition, was carried by 41 votes to 19. The House then went into committee to discuss the clauses in the Bill. “I want to make another appeal to the Government to respond to the heavy demand of public opinion that this measure be postponed and a better one worked out as asked by the Returned Services' Association,” said the Leader of the Opposition. Mr Holland, when the committee stage began. The Prime Minister, Mr Fraser, said the Bill had been brought down after consultation with experts on the various points. There was unanimity in the House and the country on the objectives of the Bill, and there were only differences of opinion as to the methods of achieving them. The Government would receive suggestions of alternative methods. Members of the Dominion Executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union had waited on him that morning and put forward certain suggestions which appeared to him to be drastic and revolutionary. The executive had been reasonable and was not attempting to be dogmatic, and said its proposals were tho best it could produce at the moment. They were being closely examined. PRINCIPLE APPROVED. “The Government is determined it will not go to the country for the election without having made provision for the settlement of service men on fair grounds,” said Mr Fraser. He read a message received the previous night from the vice-president of the New Zealand Returned Services Association, stating it approved the principles of the Bill, but preferred that the settlement of service men and the stabilisation of values should be separate Bills, and that the freehold should be given. The question of the freehold did not arise under the Bill. SEPARATE BILLS FAVOURED. Mr Barnard (Independent), said that if the provisions relating to soldier settlement and those affecting all land deals had been brought forward in two separate Bills the Government would have received a great deal more co-operation. AMENDMENTS INTRODUCED. A number of amendments to the Servicemen’s Settlement and Land Sales Bill were introduced in the House of Representatives yesterday by the Governor-General’s message. The Minister of Lands, Mr Barclay, stated that with one exception they were amendments he had previously indicated would be brought down. A new clause states that the legislation is to continue in force till the expiration of five years after the present war. Its expiry, however, will not affect the right of any person to compensation under the Bill or liability for any offence and any proceedings may be taken, continued and completed accordingly after the expiry of the measure. | LONG DEBATE ON SHORT TITLE. THIRD READING PASSED. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day. After one of the longest debates on the short title of any Bill of recent years the short title of the Servicemen’s Settlement and Land Sales Bill was passed by the House of Representatives this morning at 12.10 a.m., only after the Prime Minister had moved the closure. In moving that “the question be now put.” Mr Fraser said the House had had about seven hours on the short title. The Leader of the Opposition( Mr Holland: “Bludgeoning it through?” (Laughter, in which the Prime Minister himself joined). The Opposition called for a division on the closure. motion, which was carried by 37 ( * votes to 1G and the short title was similarly passed. There was considerable discussion and several divisions on the clauses dealing with tho setting up of the Land Sales Court and Lands Sales Committees, the Opposition’s arguments being similar to those advanced during the second reading and the short title debates. At a later stage of the Bill, Mr F. Langstone (Waimarino) drew attention to the Government amendment, stipulating that a judge of the court must be a party to a majority decision, and said that if two' lay members of the Court were in agreement and the judge in opposition there would be a stalemate. The Minister of Lands, Mr J. G. Earclay, said one of the lay members would have to give way. An assurance that the provisions relating to land suitable for settlement of discharged service men did not include the taking of homes was given by the Prime Minister. He said he thought the clause as originally drawn was clear on that point but on representations of the Law Society the words “farm lands” had been introduced as an amendment to make the meaning doubly clear. Mr A. Hamilton, who had introduced the matter, said he accepted the position that homes were protected, both on farms and in towns. At G. 15 a.m. the Bill had passed the committee stage and this was celebrated by applause from a few Labour members and the third reading was passed without incident. From midnight onwards there were eleven divisions forced by the Opposition, which itself did not move a single amendment in the committee stage. In moving the adjournment Mi- Fraser briefly indicated the business still to be done before tho end of the session. On Mr Holland suggesting that this looked like the finish of the session on Thursday. Mr Fraser replied that it might be Wednesday. At G. 23 a.m. the House rose until 2.30 p.m, on Monday.