Caky of horas
3
53577/50
Urban Coun
to possible criticisms in Farliament here.
Without some
such provision Mr. Griffiths would not feel able to accept the new proposals, since, even though the number of persons concerned would be relatively few, there is a question of principle involved.
Further, we do not see why there should be any considerable delay in widening the franchise of the Urban Council to cover these additional people, As we understand it a simple amendment of the Urban Council Ordinance would be all that is necessary, together with the opening of the necessary aditional register. The adoption, however, of a full British subject franchise, quite apart from the fact that this is not the time for a change of this character, would involve substantial delay. The drafting of a new constitution is in any event a matter of considerable com lexity. There will have to be new constitutional instruments, the preparation of which would take at least six months and possibly longer, if our legal advisers here are already committed to dealing with a programme of constitutional development elsewhere as they are at present. If elections had to be provided for, there would in addition be complex local election legislation, which itself has to be dovetailed in, in certain respects, with the constitutional instruments, and after it has been enacted a great deal would remain to be done at your end in demarcating electoral districts, in itself no simple matter, and the registration of electors. No doubt some thing could be done in advance to prepare the ground, but most of this work would have to await the operation of the constitutional instruments, On the other hand, amendment of the Urban Council Ordinancs to include a new category of person and the registration of their names can prouced independently of the constitution of the Colony.
6. then all this is taken into account it seems to us
/that
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