Legislative Assembly Hansard 1913
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Queensland Parliamentary Debates [Hansard] Legislative Assembly TUESDAY, 29 JULY 1913 Electronic reproduction of original hardcopy Personal Explanation. (29 JULY,j Questions. 67.\$ " But for the same reason which prevents inYestigation by a parliamentary committee the hon. member for Fortitude Valley must undertake not to discla e the facts in any way until the i'Sue raised in the Supreme Court ha•· bee:ct finally dispw.. ,d of." vVith out expressing any opinion on the propriety or otherwise of the advice tendered to the Chief Secretary by his solicitors, I must decline to accept any conditional or limited form of inquiry, the re,.ult of which must bo kept secret for an indefinite period. Rather than accept such a proposal, I am prepared to await the reeult of the issue raised in the Supreme Court before making the invectigation on the lines suggested by me previously. OPPOSITION MEMBERS : Hear, hear ! PAPER. The following paper, laid on the tabl<", was ordered to be printed :- Twenty-ninth report on the creation, inscription, and issue of ·;tack. LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY. QUESTIONS. TrESDAY, 29 JuLY, 1913. PROPOSED RAILWAY FROM J'vlOSS)!AN TO BAILEY'S CREEK. .The SPBKER (Hon. W. D. Armstrong, Mr. McCORMACK (Ca.irns) asked the Lockyer) took the chair at half-past 3 o'clock. Chief Secretary- " 1. Has any proposal been before the Government for the construction of a \S3ENT TO BILLS. line of railway from Mossman across the Daintree to Bailey's Creek? The SPE_\KER announced the receipt of " 2. If so, by whom was such proposal mcssai'C'' from His Excellency the Go brought forward ? >"crnor, !'unve::ing his ass<mt to the following " 3. \Vas any proposal placed before .Bills:- the Government with regard to raising Sugar Growers Bill. the cost of construction of such a line Sugar Growers' Employees Bill. of railway; if so, when, by whom, and Sugar Cultivation Bill. what were the exact terms of such pro Partition Act Amendment Bill. posal?" The PREMIER (Hon. D. F. Denham, Oxley) replied PERSONAL EXPLANATION. " 1. No. "2. See answer to No. 1. Mr. BOWMAN (Fortitude Valley): 1 ·desire to make a personal explanation. "3. See answer to No. 1." The SPEAKER: Is it the pleasure of the SUNDAY DUTY BY POLICE FORCE. Houco that the hon. member for Fortitude Mr. KIRWAN (Brisbane) asked the Home Valley be allowed to make a p<>rsonal ex Secretary- planation? " Is it his intention, in view of the HoNOURABLE MEMBERS: Hear, hear! promise given last year to place the Mr. BOWMAN: Mr. Speaker,-On the Police Force of Queensland on an equal 15th instant, the Han. the Chief Secretary, footing with those of other States, to in the cour'" of a personal explanation, introduce at an early date a scheme invited m<' to inve,tigatP certain mattero to whereby members of the force will have which I referred in the course of a speech every second Sunday off duty?" in this House, and he assured the House The HOME SECRETARY (Hon. J. G. that I would be given every a>'i ..,tance in Appel, Albe1·t) replied- any inquiry I might institute. That invita tion I readily accepted, as hon. members " I am informed that to allow the con ere aware, and propose.d that the investi stables stationed at Roma Street Police gation should be made by an impartial Station alone every second Sunday off duty would entail an addition of forty committee Sf lected from both sides of the House, whereupon the Chief Secretary four men to the present strength of that nodded his a"ent. Subsequentlo-, howen,r, station, and an additional annual ex· the Chief Secretary, on the 22nd instant, penditure of £6,825 lOs. It will thus be made a further sto.tement to the effect that seen that any such scheme would be a the advice of his f,::JJiciton, whi h he· felt very costly undertaking. There are, bound to accept, was that in the circum however, many other obstacles which would render such a scheme impractic stances such an invesLi~ation would be most impr::lper, and he further a;ked me to per able." sonally make the inquiries and, if necessary, Mr. KIRWAN: Therefore, the promise of ,with the assistance of an auditor, adding : last year is so much bosh. 6i6 Elections Acts [ASSEMBLY.] Amendment Btll. POLICE S"GPERANNUATION FUND. right of exercising the franchise. If an olcd·or happened to be absent from his elec On the motion of Mr. KIRWAN (Bris torate on election day, there would be no bane), it was formally resolved- means of recording a vot€ at all. " That there b<' laid on the table of The Ho;;IE SECRETARY: That is not so. the Hous0 a return showing- " 1. The total amount of contributions Mr. WINSTA::"JLEY: The Home Secre to thn nension fund bv members of the tary distinctly made the statement that the Police Force under the- 1891 Act. postal vote ·would not he used outside the "2. The amount paid away in pen electorate for which it was cast. sions under this Act, exclusive of the The Hm!E SECRETARY : I said that it would' p ..:msion paid ltJ tho cx-Con1n1issioner, be. Y au misunderstood me. liJ r. Pan:y-Ok·den. " 3. ThB amount of contributions from Mr. WINSTANLEY: All the argum<'nts, m~mbers of tho Police Force to the of han. members during this debate had superannuation fund under the 1891 (4 be0n opposed to that very proposal. It was per cont.) Act from the time of its frequently referred to that tho electors inception to dati>. (a) Total for e~ch would ho deprived of the abs"ntee yote, and year; (b) total amount to date. the Home Secretary should ha.-e put mem· bors right when they made that scatem€nt. "4. The payment:> to dat0 of penswns, etc., under the said Act, exclusive of Tho Ilo:YIE SEC.C:ETARY : I s.tid that the the. pension paid to the ex-Commis po·-tal vote made <'very provision for that. Bioner, Mr. Parry-Okeden. (a) Total for 'VIr. WI::'IJSTANLEY: The hon, m<:nber each year; (b) total amount paid to date." did not make himself clear, at any rate•. They still thought that it was an undesir ab~f: thing to introduce th-· postal vote. ELECTIO?-<S ACTS AMENDMENT BILL. The Ho:UE SECRETARY: The HmL"C sdtl<•d lNTRODUOTrm; IN Co:.IMITTEE. th~t. (Jir. J. Stodart, Logan, in the chair.) J\rr. WINSTANLEY: It wa' not alto R·ether s .ttled 1·et. It was not .-•ttled until The HOM]l} SECRET \RY (Hon. J. G. tho Bill went through. Inst-ead of tho deter Appel. A./bert) mond-- mination br·iag to grant facilities to people " That it is dc'oiraHo that a Bill bo t•J get their names on the roll, thero wa~ introduc·'d to amend tho Elections Acts, rathE'r a dthrmination to curtail those 1885 to 1908, and sect ion 2 of the Legis facilitico, e.nd that was an undesirable thing lath-e .\seombl;~· Act of 1867, and to repeal indeed. There were hundreds of men and the Elections Tribunal Act of 1886, and women throughout tho Sbte who found it make b,tter provision for tho trial of impossible to rcocide within the bounds of <llection petitions." one electorate from one dcction to another. "Gndcr the prcs<>nt conditions it took from Mr. WINSTANLEY (Quecnton) said ho four to six -months for a person to get his did not think thoro was any qm otion about or her nan1e on tho roll, and sotnetimo",. the desirableness of introducing a Bill to they were not able to get them on then. amend the Electi-ons Acts, but not exactly Some quicker means should be adopted for on the line; for<?shadowod in ·the Bill b0foro people to get their names on the roll. If them at the proeilnt timP. There was no th<>Y wore already on a roll they should be doubt some neco,·,ity for a chango in thei~· abl;, to get on to another roll by a simple electoral laws in 'arious directions, ,,uch as transfer without waiting to go through the providing better facilities for people to get who]€ performance of sending in their their names on tho roll. They knew that nmnes, then waiting for a court, then wait people had put their names on, the roll and ing for the r<lvision court. Even by that aJterwards they wore deprived of their votes, time something went wrong, and they found and a change was wanted in that direction. that their names were not on the electoral The working of the Elections Tribunal Act roll when the election came round. Some had been unsatisfactory for ,a long time past, changes were necessary in the elections law, and some chang.:> was necessary. It was a and he hoped the Home Secretary would be pity that the prhent Bill was not a con prepared to receive some amendments which solidotion Bill, because this continual amend would make tho Bill much more useful than ment only led to a lot of patching. It was it looked like being at the present time. desirable, v:hen the:~' V>Pre making change-s in their laws, such as those relating to Mr. RYAN (Barcoo) : He was surprised elections, that they should introduce one that tho Home Secretary. in introducing consolidating measurf', and have tho whole the Bill, had not adopted the practice which of the Act within two covers.