EARLY ELECTION?

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 97, 27 April 1933, Page 9

EARLY ELECTION?

MR. FORBES' COMMENT.

LABOUR'S BID FOR POWER.

"WE HAVE TO FACE FACTS."

(By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent.)

WELLINGTON, this day.

"He said from the commencement that the Coalition Government would not last six months," commented the Prime Minister cheerfully when he was reminded by the "Star' ? correspondent of the constantly reiterated.declarations of the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. H. E. Holland, that there will be a general election within 12 months. Mr. Forbes proceeded to deal with all the possible indications of political upheaval, but could not agree-that there was anything so threatening on the horizon. "The Coalition did.not end w six months, as predicted by Mr. Holland," he remarked, "but he has held that wish for ■ so- long that he probably holds it now as a sincere belief. ' . ' . - "Of course, the grounds for- that feeling would be that the Government, has done many things which have called for 'sacrifice by many classes of people, some of whom might be resentful. And their feelings might have encouraged the Leader of the Opposition in his belief that they would prefer him to be in power. But when the same people read the platform of the Labour party, just revised, they would hardly be prepared to go so far as to hand over the •ontrol of the country' to a party which discloses such a sad lack of knowledge of the factors upon which sound government is based. "Bid the Limit." "The new platform is nothing -bat an yttempt to make bids for power. Mr. Holland has now ' bid the limit '—but serious citizens recognise that no musician's -wand will get us out of our,

difficulties. We have to face stern economic facts, the low level of prices for our commodities, and the general depression prevailing all over the world."

The Prime Minister reminded the interviewer of the conditions, under which the Coalition Government took office, and its warning that unpleasant things had to be done. These had been put into practice. "The surprising thing," continued Mr. Forbes, "is that there has been so little grumbling in view of the action which has been forced upon us by hard circumstance. One would expect criticism, but the mass of the people who have themselves studied the problems need ho education from the Government or any other party as to the necessity for these measures. They have shown great loyalty to the Cabinet, and I want to refute most emphatically constant suggestions that there has been disagreement in the Coalition party. Members of Cabinet have been working together with the utmost co-operation. The Washington Talks. "The community expected to be called on to make sacrifices," concluded Mr. Forbes, "and the way in which the loan conversion went through is tremendously encouraging, while the,position of these securities in the market to-day demonstrates the soundness of the plan. am very hopeful of the results of the conversations between Mr. Mac Donald and' President Roosevelt, the preliminary of frank discussion of the world's difficulties and the first step in devising measures whereby they can be solved. They will take definite and concrete shape at the forthcoming Economic Conference."