THE FINANCIAL DEBATE.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXV, Issue 180, 29 July 1904, Page 3

THE FINANCIAL DEBATE.

gUTICISMS OF THE LOA\ POLICY.

Telegraph— Parliamentary Reporter.)

WELLINGTON, this day. The Financial Debate was resumed iKrdav afternoon by Mr T. H. Sidey ■iSwrshani), who denied that the Gonjent's borrowing in (he colony had wsulted in the rate of interest being inased. The rate of interest was risf 6 ' all over c wor '^ - '^' ie Budget toted -that a largely increased vote 5 ]j |j e taken fov education purposes, l°t the total increase on the Estimates S only *9000, though it was £23.000 re than was expended lust year. Mr ile (Manawalu) was the next . eaker. H e quarrelled wita the 3urr ? seeing that all the railway expenditure had not been paid from revenue, md contneded that in so healthy a colJnv as New Zealand a large exenditure on the Public Health DepartLot shculd not be made. He objectd to expenditure on secondary education until the primary system was coin'lete. Mr Vile regretted the determination of the Government to withdraw the subsidy for freezing produce iirior to export. Mr Arnold (Dunedin) contended that there had been hu-ie financial e-U\«'<-in the debate. It was lamentable that such scant interest had been taken in .the proceedings. He supported a borroffin" policy, and considered that it would°be unwise to establish a sinking fund while borrowing; continued. He believed that the dilliculty of raising a loan outside the colony during the past year had justified the issue of sJort dated debentures. That the country just now was in a grand financial position was undoubted. Not only did a surplus exist, but every department ehowed a balance of revenue. He found fault with ilie non-expenditure of authorised vote.-. He urged that the public works expenditure should jot be cut down too suddenly, otuer--wise large numbers of people would be thrown out of work and a period of de pression would ensue. He complained of the inadequate salaries paid to the teachers, ami urged the establishmen of training colleges, a superannuation fund, and Government assistance to tht kindergarten system. Mr T. Parata (Southern Maori) urged the necessity for the better education of the rising generation of the native race. He pertinently asked how the Jlftoris could be expected to administer {he laws which Parliament was passing lor their improved status unless they were educated? The two things stand jn* in the way of his people were wan. of education and want of money. He considered that the same opportunities should be given the Maoris as Europeans. Dealing wiih the land question, he said. ''Don't tell us, "Oh, we have your interests at heart, and will bring 'down a hill going in the proper direction,' and all the time your efforts are in the direction of taking the lands from us."

Mr F. Herries was of opinion that the ' Maori 'representation should be done away with, because if that were done every member would have some Maoris in his constituency, and the natives would be more effectively represented. He declared that the policy of the Government put a wedge between the two races, keeping up a separation which should have ceased long ago. He depiored the recent appointments to cer- : ■faiiTpbsitions of people who were not lit to bold them, however tit they might be ferr other appointments. Mr Herries criticised the finance of the Government •tsome length. He deprecated the Government dabbling in its own stock, and said that tue Government had £1,385,----000 to meet before the end of the financial year, through loans coming due. This policy -was, he declared, suicidal, and was contrary to the practice of Other countries, which went in for longdated loans. Out of the £1,277,000 debentures which fell due last year, only £534,950 were renewed, leaving £745,----000 not renewed. He did not seek to decry the credit of the colony, which stood higher than that of any colony in • the world, except, perhaps, Canada, but it was the rotten system of bookkeeping which forced down our credit. The London money-lenders knew that we must go to them once a year for a million loan, and when they saw us coming they raised the prices, and, having to renew our debentures, our credit fell, as it had done this year. The Premier should be ashamed of the fact that three-quarters of a million of debentures were unable to be renewed.' The colony's finance must be in a parlous way. The colony was right and prosperous enough. It was the finance that was rotten. The Premier said that the money market was stringent, but other colonies issued loans at the same time with far, less resources than New Zealand, an d had them covered easily. The money was in England, and could be obtained- i* the finance were better managed and-the-system of short-dated dentures - got rid of. He denied that these -debentures were cheaply issued, declaring -that the million and a-quarter loan issued for forty years cost £2 14/4 f v cent., while the colonial issue of debentures cost 17/3 per cent. This Would have to be renewed five times in ne for ty years, and would thus cost over twice as much as the. 40-year loan. . Premier should inform the House *f t 0 now he was grappling with the "nortdated debentures which were com■JS* month after month. Coming to in e Railway Department, Mr Herries .congratulated the Minister on the imProved returns last year. .iheHon. C. H. Mills quoted figures etmaively to show the present pros£™V a condition of the colony. The w*dit of.New Zealand had never stood |«vm as a t present. Last year the and . S - recei P ts were over £ . 2,000,000, Vn *-G*>iooo above the previous year. -»«en they realised the great concestlie r? ade by the Goveinmellt through *oi'u ms, every reasonable man m . a ?mit that the Government had tha *° raw more from the people ' "TriL f ,l6 * tllC rec l uirements of the State. intv combines were springing up thin cololl y> which would mean someserious in the future unless they . r e grappled with. He instanced the S" Tobacco Trust, which, he said, th'r" f d wit " by legislation, and ' i>L 00 H c ?. th e better, because a very Oftk Venue was to be obtained out monopoly, and he did not see why cv r - e * n cousi ns should step in and v quesr P rofits - Coming to the land to tlh** 6 advised leaseholders to stick *Wdo« • S Vp^ t * I ?ce in preference to the tree Wry' t ' S elleral desire was for the W*sf ■ Ut he felt that the p resent fc th *'¥* the resul t of mistakes made lad f inistration of Land boards, ■'■Won i Catch cr y of "Fret-hold" com- ' 'tttof- P of iL To convert leaseholds «7oittn™°- ds wou 'd require the sum of cS ,000 ' and where would that them COnic from? From nobody but n ot v one y-lender, and the freehold would Wn'ov-i at all » but mort gaged. It •eat f liament an< * the iealously guard the privilege

of tiw-leasehold. There >Vix s 0 fcneral