THROUGH DIFFICULTY

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 53, Issue 284, 12 September 1933, Page 3

THROUGH DIFFICULTY

PROBLEMS OF THE GOVERNMENT SURVEY BY MR COATES. (Per Press Association). CHRISTCHURCH, September 11. “With Cod’s help and with good health we will carve our way through these difficulties,” said the Jit. Hon. J. (J. Coates, in concluding an tddress before a party of political friends at a luncheon to-day. Mr Coates was enthusiastically received and in a brief speech lie surveyed the problems which confronted the Coalition Government and the measures, including currency depreciation, which the Government had taken to meet them. It was really too much to expect to hear anything good about the Government, said Mr Coates, but its members were elected to decide on the best measures for the country's rehabilitation, and their only objective had been to follow their policy through to this conclusion. Action necessitating sacrifice was always difficult to take, but lie believed that the people of New Zealand now recognised that there was no alternative which did not involve sacrifice. He knew the outlook of the members of the United Party. Their whole policy had been to distribute benefits and they were the last to infiict hardship on the people. To-day, however, they realised with everybody else that an adjustment had to be made when the national income had fallen so drastically. He believed that the people of the Dominion knew that the present Government was doing as well as any Government could do. Mr Coates said that the main problem which had faced the Government was the tremendous fall in farmers’ returns on the one hand and the very slow downward price, movement of commodities which farmers had to buy on the other. “Although there may be difficulties later, all the Government is responsible for is whatever deficit may be brought about by our depreciation of the currency,” he said, “and against that you have to set off the increase in the national income which is its result. Wo have to draw a line across our Budget at some month in the year and the position may then seem bad, but 1 am sure that ultimately the thing will cancel itself out and our sterling assets will not be a loss.” To-day, he continued, things seemed to be improving. The money derived from the exchange depreciation did not stay in the farmers’ pockets ; it gave increased purchasing power to the community, and ere long its effect would lie felt in the cities.”