BUDGET DEBATE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXXIII, Issue 8645, 23 August 1913, Page 7

BUDGET DEBATE.

YESTERDAY'S PROCEEDINGS.

(Per Press Association.)

WELLINGTON, August 22.

The House met at 2.30 p.m.

Mr H. Atmore, dealing with the Budget, said he was pleased to see that provision was to be made to foster fruit industry, which meant a great deal to Nelson* That district had a magnificent future before it hi the fruit industry. Many orders were received from South America and elsewhere. It was apparent that .the workers of the country were getting restive. They felt they were not getting government for the people by the people. They had instead a Government of land monopolists and vested interests, who had not the' welfare of the people at heart.

Mr A. H. Hindmarsh hoped that the Government would cause full and complete statistics to be secured of all trades and industries. He considered that New Zealand lagged behind ■ all other countries in that respect. Sufficient, encouragement had not been given to the Arbitration Act. The Government's policy regarding land seemed to be to sell land, borrow money on security and lend it out. The Premier had said" before the Farmers' Conference that a man could make his living on five acres of land. If that was so, what an immense future the country had before it. He implored the Premier to think out sonic scheme whereby the great rural problem could be settled. It did not matter whether he sank or swam, he should give a lead in the matter.

The Hon. W. F. Massey, in replying said that land for settlers was not af scarce as was imagined. If Mr Hindmarsh would go on the land he would give him a section to-morrow. He had never seen a set of. men so embarrassed as the Opposition during the debate .just concluded. The Hon. J. Allen had not gone in for window-dressing, but had put out a plain statement of affairs of the country. It was a credit to him. They had just experienced a more .prosperous season than the preceding one ond settlers had risen to the occasion, with the result that the country was in a more prosperous condition than in 1912. For the month of July last there had been an increase of. £596,456 in the exports over the figures of 1912. Those figures showed confidence in the administration of the Government, which had put forward its.policy in Wellington in July, 1911, and it had adhered to it entirely. It did not change its policy every week or so. He dealt with each of the planks of the platform and contended that each had been carried out. Members of the Opposition were using the teachers for party purposes, and the teachers knew exactly where they. were.. The Government was going to see that the matter of the teachers' salaries!, wasput right. An instalment:.,of what was going to be done would come before the House this session. The Government would increase the; taxation on those who could afford t<"> pay. A Board of Agriculture would be established, which would be purely an advisory board, no payments being attached to positions. Ifc had been asserted that withdrawals exceeded deposits in the. Post Office during the present Government's regime, but the figures proved the contrary. Unauthorised expenditure had been larger than last.year„be-, cause of the rapid growth of railways, defence and telegraphs, which no Oppositionist could object to. He quoted instances where large estates had been cut up during the past 12 months. In answer to the criticism that large landowners were not disposing of their estates and dealing with the assertions that the Government had increased the public debt by £5,700,000, he said that the Mackenzie Government borrowed £4,500,000 of that amount, A-state-ment had been made regarding New Zealand stock. He quoted from a London newspaper showing that New Zealand 5 per cents, were quoted at 100, Queensland 99, South Australia 99, Victoria 100, West Australia 99; they stood higher than they ever did before, and were above the average of the Aus-1 tralian. He defended the appointment | of Mr Northcroft as Commissioner of • Cook Islands. Mr Northcroft had not applied for the position. He (Mr Massey) believed that Mr Northcroft was the most suitable man for the position of Resident Commissioner,. This closed the debate.