PARLIAMENT IN SESSION

New Zealand Herald, Volume 82, Issue 25293, 29 August 1945, Page 8

PARLIAMENT IN SESSION

BUDGETJDEBATE TEADE WITH BRITAIN AMERICA'S POSITION VIEWS ON WAR EXPENDITURE (P.A.) WELLINGTON,- Tuesday After a brief question time the Budget debate was resumed in the House of Representatives this afternodn. Mr P. W. Doidge (Opposition—Tauranga) said that the war had created a political upheaval and the result of the British elections reflected not so much the electors' request for a Labour Government as a war-weary people's desire for a change of Government. The term of the new British Government would not produce startling revolutionary changes. Mr Attlee was likely to be Britain's most cautious Prime Minister and the attitude of the present British Government toward the Dominions was unlikely to be as generous as that of previous Governments. Titanic Trade Struggle Britain and the United States were about to become involved in a titanic trade struggle, continued Mr Doidge, and if Britain did not double her ex-, port trade she would be "sunk" and the people in the Dominions would inevitably feel the result. New Zealand must exert herself to help Britain more than ever. The Minister of Finance, Mr Nash, gave glib assurances that New Zealand was willing to spend its sterling surpluses in London, but actually it was spending much of those surpluses in the United Spates through London. Why was it that a contract for hydro-electric equipment worth £500,000 had recently been let to the United States? asked Mr Doidge. That was not helping the British working man. Even if the United States price was lower New Zealand should give its contracts to Britain. Britain had been generous with New Zealand over the lump sum payment's and the Dominion should he equally generous to Britain. The United States was the richest country in the world, glutted with gold, and would undercut Britain whenever possible, The United States took little from the rest of the world and would probably tak<} less in future. She was determined not to face another 13,000,000 unemployed. Bretton Woods Plans Opposed How was the rest of- the world going to got the dollars necessary to pay for American goods? It appeared that the United States through the Bretton Woods machinery was prepared to lend gold to the rest of the world to enable other countries to buy dollars, Mr Doidge asked if the New Zealand Government was waiting for a lead from London before committing itself about the Bretton Woods agreement. He personally opposed the Bretton Woods proposals" because they were damaging to Britain's trade recovery. Discussing concern over New Zealand's import restriction policy which he and the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Holland, encountered during their recent visit to Britain, Mr Doidge said he felt sure the new British Government would not stand for the fiscal policy pursued by the Government in New Zealand. Mr T, 11. McCombs (Government— Lyttolton) replying to Mr suggestion that the Government's financial policy was leading to serious inflation contended that inflation in New Zealand had been mild compared with other countries, "The Government's financial policy as a whole has gone a long wav to prevent the inflation we nil feared/' he added. "Other countries will be in a much worse position than we will when war expenditure ceases." Electrical Equipment Order Mr McCombs said the order for electrical equipment to which Mr Doidgo referred was actually shared between Britain. Canada and the United States after world-wide tenders had been called for. At* the time tlie < Government was calling British manufacturers had quoted prices which were obviously prearranged. The Minister of Industries and Mr Sullivan, was in Britain at the time and was asked by Dr Hugh Dalton, who was then President of the Board of Trade to hold up the contract for a fortnight. This was done and Dr Dal ton then told the British manufacturers that they were ruining British export trade and that they must submit independent prices. This was done, with the result that Dr Daltpn gained for England CoOO.OOO worth of trade which would otherwise have been lost through, the activities of a private enterprise ring, Labour and Sales Tax This Government wanted to place every possible penny of trade with Britain, but it bad to deal with honest business methods, said Mr McCombs. He defended the import control policy. Mr S. W. Smith (Opposition—Bay of Islands) said that one of the strongest planks in the platform on which the Government was returned was abolition of the sales tax—a platform which had broken down. Mr Doidge: That is not the only one. either. The sales tax had been increased to 20 per cent by the Government, in spite of its one-time opposition to such a tax, said Mr Smith, The people had not complained unduly at the payment, of taxes for war purposes. After dealing with several items of the revised war expenditure estimates, Mr Smith expressed the view that increased war expenditure when the war had ceased was an insult to the intelligence, of the people, Mr Thorn on War Expenditure

Mr .J, Thorn (Government —Thames) said it had to bo remembered that the revised figure of £ 130,000.000 for war expenditure was an estimate not for the present financial year, but until complete demobilisation had been achieved —a different thing altogether. It should also be remembered that £68,000,000 would go directly to service men and women in pay, allowances, gratuities and deferred pay, etc. The Opposition j in clamouring for reduction of taxation, Mr Thorn contended, overlooked the fact that most members of the forces would be re-

ceiving pay or allowances until the end of the financial year and some of them after that, He claimed that taxation could be reduced only at the expense of the servicemen. "What I intend to say will be very surprising to the president of the National Party, Mr W. J. Sim, K.C.," said Mr Thorn, resuming , his speech tonight Judging from Mr Sim's statements at the wnt conference of the National Party, he seemed to believe it was almost impossible for any New Zealander to be a Socialist, Mr Thorn continued. It was curious that, if the Government hesitated about. an immigration policy designed to bring people to New Zealand from Britain, t it was condemned by members of the National Party, but if immigrants came they were not fit to be members of the New Zealand Government. Mr Sim apparently believed that another disqualification of the present Government was the fact that some of its members were obsessed with Socialist doctrines which they brought with them. Only a narrow-minded bigot wopki express himself in that fashion. Claims of Country Towjia Mr R. G. Gerard (Opposition—MidCanterbury) said the Government bad been advocating decentralisation of industry, but had. not gone far enough ■with it. The dehydration plant which was installed in lliccarton should-have been placed in a country town. He believed the Minister of Housing was sympathetic enough, .but it was extremely difficult to get housing for country towns. The usual jnspr to claims of such towns for the allocation iof industries to them was that there were no houses available. Decentralisation would improve the health of factory workers and increase the amenities of people in country towns. Mr Gerard paid a tribute. .«■to the work of the staffs of the Post and Telegraph and Works Departments in repairing damage done during ,recent storms. He said the Government should go into the question of insurance against snow and flood loss on a national basis to s&e if it was possible to devise some form of insurance to protect farmers against losses such as Canterbury experienced recently. "Magnificent Budget" Mr C. L. Carr (Government —Timaru) said the Budget was magnificent. It was inevitable that an immediate aftermath of the war should be a call for expenditure on a sustained high level. Dismissing decentralisation, Mr Carr claimed that the Government had actively supported a policy of dispersal of industry and was applying a similar policy to Government Departments. Mr Carr said that if the Government members advocated reform ,of the money system it was not because they supposed a money token could replace real wealth, but it should be adequate to represent that real wealth without either inflation or deflation. Mr H. Aoland reviewing the problems of the family man, said one naturally looked to the Government to give a lead to assist him but there was little in the Budget to secure any relief from the war burdens' lie had to bear. The debate was adjourned and the House rose at 10.30 p.m. U-BOAT SHELTERS DEMOLITION DECREED AIR RAID SHELTERS ALSO All the gigantic bombproof U-boat pens built by the Germans are to be demolished by the Allies. The same treatment, is to be given to the forced concrete shelters used to house essential personnel or operational quarters. The destruction of these installations is being undertaken as part of the complete disarmament of Germany. - . Although almost proof against side attack, the concrete structures could be demolished by a heavy internal explosion. The explosive charge will have to be very large, especially in the case of U-boat pens. Some of the smaller concrete bunkers and seaplane sheds at Kiel and else-, where have already been blown up. It was found necessary to use about 100 tons of German bombs to ensure the complete destruction of even a mediumsized bunker." The amount required to demolish the larger structures such as the U-boat pens might be greatly reduced by fitting charges into holes bored in the concrete, hut it is doubtful whether this method would justify the time and labour expended, even by German working parties. NEW FOOTWEAR FACTORY 10, c.) HAMILTON, Tuesday Application has been made for the necessary Authority to establish a footwear manufacturing business in Hamilton by Bridgens and Co., Ltd., of Auckland. Premises have been secured in Victoria Street, Hamilton. The factory is at first, to manufacture only uppers of juvenile footwear, and the articles will have to be sent to Auckland for completion: HARBOUR BRIDGE PLAN (S.R.) WELLINGTON, Tuesday A request -that the Minister of Works, Mr Semple, should give an indication now of when he would proceed with the bridge across the Auckland Harbour was contained in a question asked in the tipuse of Representatives today by .Mr H. T. Morton (Opposition —Waitemata), Mr Morton added that the enormous increase of. traffic across the harbour during the past ten years made the construction of a bridge a most urgent national undertaking, and one which would give employment to hundreds of returned men. BILLIARDS TOURNEY (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Tuesday The first round of the New Zealand amateur billiards championship concluded this evening. The results of today's games were as follows:—A. Bowie (Te Kuiti) , 666/ beat F. Higgins (Westport), 044; A. Twohill (Greymouth), 666, beat .10. V. Roberts' (Auckland), 01(5; J. J. Shepherd (Auckland), 060, beat \V. P. O'Neill (R.unanga), 400. The best break was 76 by Shepherd.