I have much pleasure in moving that the Bill entitled " An Ordinance to a-mend the Village Communities Ordin­ance, No. 9 of 1924 ", be now read the First time.

I think that in moving the First Reading of this Bill, which is one of some importance, it is necessary for me, beyond merely going through, as it is customary in the case of formal Bills, the clauses of the Bill, to go into the whole question of local government in this country and the proposed changes. This Bill embodies certain important provisions which can only be properly understood if the ideas behind the entire remodelling of local government in this country-of which this, I may say, is by way of a foundation stone-are understood. It is desirable that those preliminary points should be dealt with.

I would like to say at the outset that the importance of local government has been very imperfectly, and I might say, very tardily, recognized throughout the world. It is commonplace, it is admitted that even in Europe it was only not so long as 150 or 200 years ago that there was any general realization of the important part in any govern­mental system that local government must needs play.

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