More Victories for the

[?]-NG Legislative Council in Session

More Victories for the Administration Steam Roller

From Gordon Thomas in Port Moresby.

The Administrator of Papua and New Guinea, will have to remain an Administrator (and not a High Commissioner); the question of liquor permits for natives is still undecided; and an appropriation of £5,345,000 will enable the Administration to carry on its business into the new financial year.

IHESE—and a number of other matters —concerned the Papua and New Guinea Legislative uncil when it met in Moresby June 27.

VEr. Malcolm L. McColm, MHR, lo was on a visit to the Territory, ,s present at the opening and s provided with a seat on the or of the Council.

3Igh Commissioner—Out

Dne of the first items of business s a statement made by the Pre ent of the Council that the mmonwealth Government “does t propose to make any change the title of the Head of the ministration.” rhis statement follows on a ition which was carried at the irch session (by a vote of 20 to that the title of the Head of the ministration should be that of ?h Commissioner entitled to the irtesy, “His Excellency,” instead Administrator, which is away vn the list of precedence in a line of heads of other Pacific Islands ritories. Mr. E. A. James proposed ; change in title originally. important measure, more or 3 a machinery Bill, introduced by . Watkins (Acting Secretary for w) abolished the Department of ; Government Secretary and also i Department of District Services 1 Native Affairs and created the partment of Civil Affairs and the partment of Native Affairs. 7he re-organisation comes into ce on July 1, 1955, and affects le fifty Ordinances and many There was no debate this Bill.

Liquor Bill

)ebate on the Native Liquor Bill 3 resumed where it left, off at March 25 meeting. The principal kesman was Father Dwyer, \mo i absent from the previous debate. le supported the Bill, in principle, 1 urged that permits to drink be nted for six months only, as a bationary measure. He proposed t the Consents Board include a i-official Member of the Council

as the chief objectors to the measure were Non-Official Members.

The Rev. D. E. Ure said that the Bill should not be passed by a small majority. It was a difficult problem in that the Council was called upon to legislate for people in the stone age as well as for natives who have reached a stage where they are entering the Public Service. Mr.

Ure moved that a Select Committee be appointed to consider the Bill.

The following members were appointed to the Select Committee: the Rev. D. Ure, the Rev. J. Dwyer, Dr. J. Gunther, Messrs. J. K.

McCarthy and T. Grahamslaw.

At the meeting on the following day, Dr. Gunther asked leave to re sign from the Committee and Mr.

R. Bunting was appointed in his place.

Dr. Gunther, in withdrawing from

Committee, said that his views the subject were well-known (he eves that liquor permits should issued to approved natives) and t no good puTpose would be ieved by his becoming a member the Committee. Any professional iwledge he has will be available it.

Finance—“Not The

Foggiest Notion. . .”

ine other Bills were presented ing the session, including the iply Bill, authorising the Admin ation to issue out of public ;nue a sum totalling £5,345,000 to

en ab 1 e the Administration to function until the budget is brought down later this year.

There was considerable debate on this bill from private members. Mr.

James said that, in his opinion, it was useless for matters of finance to be discussed in the Council. So far as non-official members were concerned, they “hadn’t the foggiest notion what is the basis for collec tion of revenue for the next year . . . nor the basis of expenditure for which this Supply is in part raised.”

Mr. James said that the Admin istration’s “three year development

plan” was the most important fact ever considered in the development of the Territory—yet the Council had no knowledge what was to be included in the plan, nor would it have any say in what was to be included until, in fact, the plan was passed and it was quite impossible to alter it.

On the adjournment, Mr. Barrett and Mr. James spoke on matters of public interest affecting privileges for Asiatic people in the Territory and the publication of the Annual Reports of Papua and New Guinea Territories.

On the afternoon of June 28, Council adjourned until the Thurs day morning. (On Wednesday morn ing the tourist ship Himalaya arrived in port.)