PARLIAMENTARY JOTTINGS.

White Ribbon, Volume 25, Issue 291, 18 September 1919, Page 2

PARLIAMENTARY JOTTINGS.

The first week of the Session has not brought an\ very startling developments. The Prime Minister has not so far put forward any detailed policy as a counternlast to Sir Joseph Ward's exhaustive manifesto of Libc i.d aims and objects. Ail parties, Ministerial, Opposition, and Labour, have professed their willingness to subordinate party interests to the good of the country, and allow legislation of Dominion importance, if non-con-lioversial, to pass without undue delay. Accordingly, a> far as the Liberals were concerned, there was little or no discussion on the Address--111 Reply. The Labour part> used the time honoured opi>ortunity for speechmaking; all five members spoke. A No-Confidence motion was proposed, which found no support among the Liberals, and in the early hours of Saturday morning the debate collapsed.

I Tgent matters of a national char ; er were dealt with before the Ad<ic sin Reply debate; the most interesting of which was that which maiks the new dignity attained by New Zealand as a partner, and no longei a mere dependency, of the British Empire. In both Houses the motion for ratifying the Peace Treaty with (ierm.iny was passed early in the week, with little discussion, except from two Labour members, who opposed the r. 1 1itication, and were answered by two, a Liberal and a Reform member. Xatuially the speeches of the two responsible leaders were listened to with great interest, especially all that con cerned Samoa and New Zealand's mandatory. As regards Finance, a Bill was passed through both Houses authorising a loan of 164 millions for the purposes of repatriation, some for the purchase of land for settlement, some for payment of pensions, gratuities, and ether methods of assisting discharged soldiers. The Opposition, not regarding this as a party measure, supiK>rted the Bill, but both Liberals and Labour members objected to the loans being free from income tax. An amendment was moved making the loans taxable, but it was defeated. In spite of protests raised in some parts of the House against the Bill being treated as a mattei of urgenNw, it was passed through all its stages at one sitting. On all sides the question of electoral reform i» being discussed, with

reference to substituting some more satisfactory expedient than the second ballot. Proportional representation is favoured by many, but the time is too short to allow of this being intro dute.l at the next election. Sir J. Ward’s suggestion that the method should be applied first to the City and Suburban electorates would remove some of the difficulties, and the othei proposal to adopt .vox single-member districts some system of preferential voting is regarded by one great authority on the subject as desirable, even though it is only a very small instalment of the desired reforms. But whether either will be accepted by Parliament remains to be >een. Members have been busv, as usual,

asking questions on various matters, some or which will be of interest to women electors. One wants to know whether legislation will be intro duced to allow soldiers’ wives to vote at the coming election, irrespective of their length of residence in New Zealand. Other questions related to grants and allowances for soldiers’ widows and widowed mothers. On< member wished (voveriitnent to in crease the maternity bonus under the Social Insurance Scheme from jCa to Z and raise the income limit from jC- 00 to £250. The Member for Wellington South has a great desire for returns, and amongst those he has asked for is one showing the number of soldiers and others suffering from Venereal Disease, and the precautions, if any, that are being taken by the Public Health Department to prevent the spread of the disease. Mr L. M. 1 sitt has asked for a return showing the number of vineyards in the Waitemata and Hawke’s Bay districts, and the* number of employees at these vineyards. One question, the answer to which will be eage'rlv looked for by the worried mothers of active, restless boys and girls, relates to the possible* intention of (iovernme'nt to place on the market standardised boots at low nates.