TAXES AND PENSIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 186, 7 August 1936, Page 9

TAXES AND PENSIONS.

PRIME MINISTER'S DEFENCE.

(By Telegraph.—Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, Thursday.

A vigorous defence of the Government's taxation proposals was made by the Prime Minister, Mr. Savage, in the House of Representatives to-night in the financial debate. The Prime Minister said he knew there were- people who thought the country could be run without taxing anyone. There were certain public services, local and national, that had to be paid for and the community as a whole had to levy itself to keep them going. While the Government was accused of wrecking things and while it was accused of driving money out of the country, the deposits exceeded the withdrawals in the Post Office Savings Bauk by £430,000 in the month of July. That did. not sound much like people sending tlicir money to Australia. Mr. Coates: They're saving up for the Grand National.

"Perhaps my right honourable friend is right. I hadn't thought of that. They're saving up for the Grand National," rejoined the Prime Minister. Continuing, Mr. Savage said he would agree with the Opposition iii one thing, and that was that the Government hadn't done enough. He would have been delighted to have made the old age pension 30/ at'least.