Committee of Supply

Mr Speaker: Committee of Supply, what day?

Mr Hart: Now, Sir.

Motion and Schedule considered in Committee of Supply.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Mr Hart: Schedule

The Chairman: I think hon. Members have received the summary of totals of Supplementary Provision under the heads of expenditure shown in Sessional Paper No. Cmd. 18 of 1956. I have received no notice of amendments.

Head 3 -

The sum of $3,780 for Head 3 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 7 -

The sum of $20 for Head 7 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 14 -

Question proposed,

"That the sum of $1,720 for Head 14 stand part of the Schedule."

Mr John Ede: Mr Chairman, Sir, I have one point that I wish to ask on this particular item, which is given as item No. 12 in Command Paper No. 18, it being, as I understand it, one of 28 items under the "Schedule of Applications for Supplementary Provision approved under authority delegated by the Legislative Assembly". If I understand it aright, these items are covered by a resolution of the Assembly passed on the 25th of May, 1955, empowering Government to authorise expenditure on new services up to a limit of $10,000 in each case. At the time, if I understood him aright, the Hon. the Financial Secretary gave an undertaking that this delegation of authority by this Assembly to the Government would not be exercised for the creation of new posts. Now, this item under Head 14, Chemistry, may not be very important - the creation of a post of Typist for the Inspectorate in the Department of Chemistry - but unless I am mistaken, it is a violation of the undertaking given. If I am wrong, I am sure my hon. Friend will correct me.

Mr Hart: I am grateful to the Member for Tanglin for drawing the attention of the Assembly to this mistake in the drafting of the Command Paper. I did give an assurance that the authority given to the Government by the Assembly last year for the approval of votes under $10,000 would not apply to the creation of new appointments. That is the position and these items are wrongly included in this particular section of the Command Paper.

The Chairman: Will you name the items, Mr Financial Secretary?

Mr Hart: Items 10 and 11 -

The Chairman: We have dealt with items 10 and 11. It is too late now to reconsider them.

Mr Hart: Items 12, 13, 14, 19 -

The Chairman: Shall we deal with -

Mr Hart: I thought I might give information about all the items concerned in reply to the question.

The Chairman: Yes, when we come to the items separately. The position, as I see it, is that these items, although wrongly placed, can be voted either for or against, and if they are voted against, then, of course, it is up to the Government to find some means of rectifying the mistakes.

The Chief Minister: If it please you, Mr Chairman, Sir, I think there is no real mistake except, perhaps, in the heads under which these items are presented in pursuance of a resolution approved by the Assembly last year, but the items themselves, to which objections are being taken, are new items in respect of which we seek the approval of the Assembly and on which no expenditure has as yet been incurred.

The Chairman: I am glad the Chief Minister has pointed that out. My impression was that appointments had, in fact, been made.

The Chief Minister: No, Sir.

Mr John Ede: Mr Chairman, Sir, I distinctly got that impression myself, because the heading under Command Paper No. 18 says "under authority delegated by the Legislative Assembly", and some of these appointments are with effect from the 1st of March, 1st of January, and so on. Naturally, I am only too glad to accept the assurance of the Hon. the Chief Minister that this is incorrect.

Question put, and agreed to.

The sum of $1,720 for Head 14 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 21 -

The Chairman: Mr Financial Secretary, you have already pointed out items 13 and 14?

Mr Hart: Yes.

The Chairman: They come in under that category.

The sum of $6,020 for Head 21 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

The Chairman: I will go through the Heads. Then perhaps the Financial Secretary will stop me when I come to those special items.

Head 25 -

The sum of $6,400 for Head 25 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 29 -

The sum of $1,200 for Head 29 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 36 -

Mr Hart: Here we have another case of the creation of a post, Sir. As I have said, this item is wrongly included under the head "Schedule of Applications for Supplementary Provision approved under authority delegated by the Legislative Assembly". It should be included in the section of the schedule headed "Schedule of Applications for Supplementary Provision for which the approval of the Legislative Assembly is sought".

The sum of $10 for Head 36 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 45 -

Mr Hart: Here again, in respect of this Head and the following Head 54, these posts have not yet been approved.

The sum of $2,856 for Head 45 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 54 -

The sum of $7,780 for Head 54 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 55 -

The Chairman: The same remarks apply, Mr Financial Secretary?

Mr Hart: Yes, Sir.

The sum of $11,862 for Head 55 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 12 -

The sum of $6,026 for Head 12 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 13 -

The sum of $390 for Head 13 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 21 -

The sum of $70 for Head 21 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 28 -

The sum of $2,000 for Head 28 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 29 -

The sum of $80 for Head 29 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 30 -

The sum of $610 for Head 30 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 31 -

The sum of $2,170 for Head 31 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 32 -

The sum of $800 for Head 32 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 39 -

The sum of $8,300 for Head 39 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 42 -

The sum of $725 for Head 42 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 46 -

The sum of $281 for Head 46 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 52 -

The sum of $105 for Head 52 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 54 -

The sum of $4,764 for Head 54 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 55 -

The sum of $2,000 for Head 55 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 3 -

The sum of $10,000 for Head 3 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 15 -

The sum of $12,000 for Head 15 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 19 -

The sum of $23,100 for Head 19 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head D 19 -

The sum of $17,000 for Head D 19 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 21 -

The sum of $15,715 for Head 21 ordered to stand part of the Schedule.

Head 27 -

Question proposed,

"That the sum of $116,000 for Head 27 stand part of the Schedule."

The Chief Minister: Mr Chairman, Sir, could I seek your guidance at this juncture? We are shortly coming to the moment of interruption and it has occurred to me, Sir, that the House may well wish to finish the work before half-past four, and then I will seek the permission of the House that we do not sit tomorrow but sit on the 12th of April for the purpose of the motion on Education. Is it appropriate to move at this juncture. Sir, that Standing Orders be suspended in order to enable the House to complete the business on the Order Paper?

The Chairman: Of course, the Chief Minister has to obtain the consent of hon. Members.

The Chief Minister: I was wondering, Sir, since we are in Committee.

The Chairman: I think if an hon. Member will move, "That the Chairman do leave the Chair to enable an hon. Member to move a motion in respect of the adjournment", then it will be in order.

The Chief Minister: If it please you, Sir, I respectfully move,

That the Chairman do leave the Chair of the Committee of Supply and resume the Chair in the Assembly to enable a motion to be moved in respect of the adjournment.

Question put, and agreed to.

Thereupon Mr Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the Assembly.