Responsible government in the Dominions: Responsible government in the Dominions

Responsible government in the Dominions (Vol. 1)

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Multivolume work

Identifikator:: 1896933912

Document type:: Multivolume work

Author:: Keith, Arthur Berriedale http://d-nb.info/gnd/119086794

Title:: Responsible government in the Dominions

Place of publication:: Oxford

Publisher:: Clarendon Press

Year of publication:: 1912-

Collection:: Economics Books

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Volume

Identifikator:: 1896934455

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-236504

Document type:: Volume

Author:: Keith, Arthur Berriedale http://d-nb.info/gnd/119086794

Title:: Responsible government in the Dominions

Volume count:: Vol. 1

Place of publication:: Oxford

Publisher:: Clarendon Pr.

Year of publication:: 1912

Scope:: LI, 568 Seiten

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

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Chapter

Document type:: Multivolume work

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Part II. The executive Government

Collection:: Economics Books

198 THE EXECUTIVE GOVERNMENT [PART It to find other advisers better able than they to conduct His Majesty’s Government, or unless I felt that their advice was contrary to the feelings of the country. I did not believe that I could at that moment find such advisers, and [ felt that if I refused to accept the advice of the Premier [ should be doing so without reasonable certainty of my action being supported by the constituencies. L therefore agreed to dissolve Parliament. The Premier concurred with me in thinking that the new Parliament ought to meet with as little delay as possible. He assured me that, provided the elections took place before the end of the year, sufficient money was legally available ;0 discharge the liabilities of the State without any further grant of supply. I therefore dissolved Parliament at once to permit of its re-assembling on the earliest day which the Premier thought at all convenient. The action of the Governor was not popular, because the members of Parliament did not like being sent back to their constituencies so soon after the last election, and the season of the year was not well suited for electioneering.! But a more serious matter came to light: the Auditor called attention in a report of December 30, 1908, to the fact that large sums were being expended not merely without parlia- mentary authority, but also without a warrant from the Governor. It appeared that the Treasurer, who was also Premier, gave instructions for the expenditure without regard to the legal difficulties of the position, because it was necessary to keep the state solvent. The matter was taken up on the assembling of Parliament, when the ministers at once resigned as they were clearly in a minority, and the matter was entrusted to a commission for inquiry. But the commission mainly elicited the fact that financial irregu- larities on a large scale were usual, not that the ex-Premier had acted in any very improper way, bearing in mind the ! For criticisms of the Governor’s action, see Age, December 7, 1908, January 19, 20, February 24, 1909; contra, Argus, December 26, 1908, February 24, 1909 ; and cf. Sydney Bulletin, December 17 and 24, 1908 ; Adelaide Chronicle, December 12, 1908, January 9, 1909. ' Sce Parliamentary Debates, 1909, pp. 9 scq., 330-3.

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