GRAVE WARNING.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 37, 13 February 1931, Page 7

GRAVE WARNING.

SERIOUS CRISIS.

BRITAIN'S FINANCES.

Snowden Reveals Need for

Utmost Economy.

INDUSTRY'S FULL BURDEN.

(United P.A.-Electric Telegraph-Copyright*

(Received 0.30 aim.) LONDON, February 12,

In. the House of Commons Sir Laming Worthington-Evans, on belialf of the Conservatives, moved a vote of censure on the Government for its continuous addition to the public expenditure.

The mover said ■ the country was. already committed to various relief Tvorks involving an expenditure of £150,000,000, and tlie Liberals were demanding more. In handling national insurance the Government was. borrowing inimey to relieve current expenditure..

Oile of the Treasury's principal officers }iad declared that the whole stability of the ; 1 -financial system was endangered.- Continental financiers were withdrawing their balances in gold from Jjondon. The Government was leading the country to the brink of financial disaster by means which had wrecked Australia's finance.

'Hie ■ Speaker said he did not believe that .the present Government could restore confidence either at Home or abroad. . The House ought to act as a Council of' State and pass the motion.-

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Snowder.; said ino one would welcome suggestions- for economy more than he, anl no proposals submitted would fail to receive his closest and most sympathetic attention. . dealing with the Liberal amendment to set .up a-committee >to overhaul the national ■. expenditure and recommend economies, which was afterwards moved by- Sif ; D6nald Mac Lean, Mr. * Snowden emphasised- that only very -small economies could ,-be hoped for in the cost, of administration. It was only. on policy 1 matters that any -large savings could be: and the . House must face that fact. "" "Having pointed out that difficulty," continued Mr. Snowden, "I say 'with all the seriousness that I can command that drastic and disagreeable measures ; will have to be taken if Budget equilibrium is to be maintained,' and'if industrial recovery, is to be made." 5 Grave Industrial Depression. Expenditure which might be easy and tolerable in - prosperous times became impossible in a state of grave industrial depression. Schemes involving heavy expenditure, howc.vct desirable,- Would have to wait until prosperity returned. This was necessary in order, to maintain the'>present standard of life. " This'was a crisis which no one foresaw, hut r the country and the House of Commons-, must ; realise the' gravity' df the situation, and units in an effort to over-come-'their temporary difficulties and restore their, former prosperity. It: was no secret that there would be a heavy deficit at the end of the financial yeitr. No Budget' would or 'could stand the "unexpected strain caused by the past year's increase in unemployment: The expenditure had increased and the revenue' had declined. The country's productive capacity had fallen off by 20 per cent. "When the history of the way in which the war- debts and the debt to Washington were incurred, with its recklessness, extravagance and unnecessary^•"commitments, comes to be known, 1 am afraid posterity-'will curse those responsible • for it," said the Chancellor. "Despite the-world depression, Britain has: suffered less' than any other 'great industrial country. We are the world's financial centre; 1 Other nations are watching: us and any well-grounded, fear that. Britain's Budgetary equilibrium was., • un&fwnd might' have disastrous consequents. ' i i • • -'Therefore we must- .maintain . our financial eputation," continued Mr. Snowden, "and 1 that we can do. Our position fundamentally is sounder than thit 'of any other'country in the world.' All that is necessary is an effort to get overv-theFpres'ent crisis. That-can 'be done. " ' '' Sacrifices from AIL. "It will involve temporary , sacrifices from every one. Those best able to bear them will have to make the largest sacrifices. To this the Cabinet is prepared to make a substantial contribution. "This is a crisis which no one party can, solve., The country and the House must realise the gravity .of the position, and.instead of party bickering unite in a common .effort to take effective measures to overcome the temporary difficulties and ; to restore our former prosperity." .. Under present conditions any increase in taxation which fell on industry would he. the- last straw. ' Sir Donald Mac Lean (Northern Cornwall) moved a Liberal amendment, demanding that a committee be set up to recommend practicable, immediate economies. He said the country had to face the fact that in the most favourable conditions there " would be chronic unemployment of at least 1,250,000 persons for from seven to 10 years. Ways must be found for distributing the national cost of Telief in the shape Of wages. Revolutionary Speech. Mr. W. J. Brown (Lab., West Wolverhampton) said Mr. Snowden's speech was one of the 'most revolutionary in the present Parliament. It meant that Mr. Snowden so highly regarded the city of London and the.'interests of the banker and. the moneylender that he was prepared'to go bafek on the.whole of his own political career. .It meant the surrender, of the whole Labour philosophy at the bidding of financial interests. The Labour party had become the handmaid of capitalism. It' was monstrous, that a Socialist Chancellor of the Exchequer should have made such a speech. The Government had no unemployment policy. It- was staggering from crisis to crisis. It appeared to have neither the pluck to govern nor the grace to get out. Mr. Norman Angell • (Lab., North said that instead-of harping on,'cheese-paring economies, there should, be a .cost-of-living index figure applied to bondholders.