REFORM POLICY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 231, 30 September 1930, Page 5

REFORM POLICY.

WAIPAWA BY-ELECTION.

UNEMPLOYMENT LE&ISLATION

SUSTENANCE "AN INSULT." (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) TAKAPAU, Monday. There was a large gathering of Waipawa electors at Takapau this evening to greet the Right Hon. J. G. Coates, who gave an address in support of Mr. William Tucker, the Reform candidate for the Waipawa by-election. Mr. Norman M. Paulsen presided. Mr. Tucker dealt with the history of the Reform parly, taxation, finance, unemployment and railways. He emphasised how the Reform party had helped the farming community. He said the Liberals had arrogated to themselves the title of United, and were simply the wreck of a party that had never had the courage to disallow Socialism and Labour, nor the brains to foresee the inevitable trend of the Socialist Labour policy. Referring to unemployment, Mi - . Coates said the policies of the two parties were widely divergent. Unless a strong policy were* adopted, the question, instead of being solved, would be aggravated. No compromise in principle was possible. The amount paid for unemployment work in 1925, £450,000, grew to £1,500,000 in 1930, while the registered unemployed .grew from 2300 to 5600 in July. The. figures themselves "afforded incontrovertible evidence of the failure of the Government's policy. „ There was never a party in New Zealand 'tha.£ paid better or higher wagps than the Reform party. The Unemployment Bill had been brought clown by the United party, at the request of the Labour party, and not by the Reform party. He did not think the sustenance allowance should be considered. Anything in the shape of a dole was an insult to the people, but the bill to-day was better than the one ~ wanted by Labour. Mr. Coates contended that it was Wong in principle to pay unemployed relief workers standard wages, because proof had-been shown that many men had left good positions for relief works. He could not blame farm workers for leaving to accept 14/ a day, but they were only later added to the ranks of t' ■ unemployed. He favoured employing men on suitable lands rather than on railway works. The real remedy of unemployment was to enable private enterprise to reabsorb the unemployed in industry by reducing the overhead costs of production and increasing output.