"COLD FEET"

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 173, 24 July 1941, Page 4

"COLD FEET"

POLITICAL LABOUR

MR. LEE ON THE BUDGET

(By Telegraph.—Parliamentary Reporter.)

WELLINGTON, this day

While the Budget contained features of great value to the community and achieved an expansion of many principles, there was a good deal of arsenic in behind the sugar, declared Mr. Lee (Democratic Labour, Grey Lynn) in the Budget debate in the House of Representatives last night. The Budget had come down at a nice time for the Government. It was a by-election Budget, and he thought the sugar would wear a little bit thin before the general election. Mr. Lee referred to the increased family allowances that had been made and to other benefits conferred by the Budget, making special mention of the allowance for the children of soldiers. They were all good features, but the Government had not gone far enough. "We have got to engage in far more generous treatment of dependents of soldiers, especially married soldiers," he said. "Before we start to break up homes by conscription."

Mr. Lee said he used to hear members of the Labour party talking about the necessity of completely controlling credit and currency. The extent of his political criminality was that he still continued to believe in these things. Because he believed them to be more necessary than at any time in our history, he did not think the winning of the war alone was enough. The war had to be won and also foundations established of a worth-while world for the soldier when he came back, and no one could convince him that this world could be built under the staggering magnitude of debt. There was not a Labour member who had not said this, but now the party machine had evidently reversed their attitude.

The Minister of Marketing, Mr. Barclay: All out of step except our John.

IVJr. Lee contended that the Labour party had got political cold feet and had cooled off.