THE FINANCIAL DEBATE.

Press, Volume LIX, Issue 17812, 11 July 1923, Page 11

THE FINANCIAL DEBATE.

OPENING SPEECHES. (ABBIDGED PEESS ASSOCIATION REPORT.) WELLINGTON, July 10. hen the House, of Representatives resumed at 7.30 tins evening, the debate on the Financial Statement was opened by Mr T. M. Wilford (Leader of the Opposition), -who said that he proposed to discuss some of the proposals contained in the Budget, and also mention some of the changes essential to good government in this country which -were e.bsent from the Budget. In 1912 the Reform Party started their policy of "window dressing,'- and he proposed to show how great were the differences between the promises and performances of that party. He thought the fact that not one Minister had controlled any one Department for any length of time contributed to this result. Even in this Budget there were contradictions in figures and statements, due probably to some want of permanence of Ministers. Tlie Prime Minister, whose accession to power might be described as a "political accident," had ridiculed his (Mr Wilford's) suggestion that there must bo a reduction in company taxation, but now in his Budget he declared that reduction in company taxation must take place. The Prima Minister had stated at Oamaru that amongst the interest-earning assets which would bo set against the national debt were the railways, but as the railways last year earned only £2 16s per cent, instead of £3 15s per cent., the statement mado by the Prime Minister was one scarcely worthy of a Minister in his position. The Reform Party stood for the present banking system, and that constituted the fundamental difference between that party and the LiberalLabour Party led by himself. The , bank rate of interest was oppressive, and bad times all over the world were being taken advantage of by banking rings. The Reform newspapers wore claiming that the Reform Party must remain in office because there were some sixty millions of loans falling due in the next six years. But why were the papers not frank? Why did they not tell the people that about halt" of that sum was due to the Post Office alone, the renewal of which was only a matter of arrangement between the Minister of Finance and the Post-master-General? The claim that the "wizard of finance" must remain at the head of affairs was only a political cry raised to mystify the people. Other public Departments had also lent money to the State, one of which was the Public Trust Offico. The Prime Minister was in charge of that Department: lie was also Minister of Finance; and he wondered if Mr Massey would have much trouble in persuading the head of the Public Trust Department to renew the loan to the Minister of Finance. Dealing with the proposed reduction in taxation, Mr Wilford declared that Customs duties were too high. As Minister of Finance, the Prime Minister had indulged in a policy of borrowing and spending. Anything he could mortgage he mortgaged, and he wondered how long this career of borrowing and spending was going on. He Wanted to know why the Government had put nothing in the Budget which would offer some relief in connexion with currency and exchange questions. We sent out of the Dominion some sixteen million pounds' worth of dairy produce annually, and when costs and charges made on that amount were considered, it was time the Government did something to relieve the farmers of those charges. On the subject of loan redemption, ho quoted the Budget of 1922, and accused the Prime Minister of a breach of faith in not carrying out promises made in that Budget, which breach of faith, he claimed, confirmed his opening statement that the Reform Budgets wero only "window dressing," intended to meet the necessities of the moment. .It was a much debated question as to whether in bad times the country should reduce the National Debt or reduce taxation. Ho favoured the latter view, and declared that every million borrowed by the Prime Minister put a further burden on the taxpayers. We must set our faces against large borrowings, and ail heroic effort must be made to reduce taxation on companies through tho Customs. Coming to the annual appropriations, Mr Wilford declared that the expenditure on the Departments exceeded last year's expenditure by a million and a half, yet in face of this the Prime Minister boasted in his Budget of economy. This was a matter that would have to be carefully looked into. There were other discrepancies in tho Budget which did not square. So far as soldier settlement was concerned, tho Government was hiding the true position in the Budget. Why did they not tell the House frankly what the country's losses wero in connexion with those settlements? While the Prime Minister proposed to re-establish penny postage, ho raised the telephone charges. What he gave with one hand he took away with the other. One page of the Budget told the House that the Public Works expenditure was to be a million and a half more than last year, yet on tho next page he warned the people that they must economise. So far as land settlement was concerned, the proposals of the Budget were hopeless. This country could only be got out of its difficulties by a progressive land policy which would immediately reduce tho unemployed problem. We were now paying a subsidy of £318,583 to the Public Servants' Superannuation Fund, and that would have to go on, but the time was coming when others beside public servants would be claiming superannuation, and that position would require careful attention by future governments. The lion. W. Downie Stewart said he did not propose to spend much time in replying to Mr Wilford. for his speech reminded him of a Statement once made by that gentleman: "Where the Liberal party is, it would be hard for us to explain." Mr W r ilford had complained of the railways not earning sufficient interest on the capital invested, but as a matter of fact they were earning a higher rat-e of interest than the standard set by the Liberal Party, so that he thought there was li'ftle to complain of. Mr Wilford had declared in favour of a State Bank. How then could he support Sir Joseph Ward at Tauranga, one of whose chief planks was against a State Bank? Further, the action of the banks doing business in New Zealand was nothing like so disastrous to their customers as Mr Wilford pictured. The fact was that a State bank could not do better for the customers than the present banks were doing. Mr W iltord complained of exchange rates, but offered no remedy. Mr Wilford also complained that the Customs duties were too high, but ail through the debates on. the latest Customs tariff, the continued cry from the Liberals was that sufficient protection was not being given to New Zealand The revision of the tariff had resulted in the collection of less duty on' British goods than would have been collected had the tariff not been revised, so that people who bought British goods were lighter taxc-d than previously. The Government had been blamed for borrowing, but the pages

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of "Hansard" were full of applications made by Mr Wilford for largo expenditure on hydro-electric ana other sciiemes, all necessitating heavy boirowing. llegarding "breach of faith' on the part of the Government, the Minister claimed that the monies were being appropriated to the purposes stated b-y the Prime Minister, as fast as they were available, and no one could do it more speedily. Discrepancies in Departmental appropriations were common enough, but were easily explained by the fact that the books of a Department did not always close on the same date on which the Treasury made up its figures. Speaking of the Budget generally, Mr Stewart claimed that it was remarkable for the recovery made in the financial position. The economies effected had imposed an an enormous burden on the Prime Minister, and what he had accomplished was a truly wonderful feat. The returns Showed that our trade with the Mother Country was gradually improving under the preferential tariif, the raflwavs tfere now doing well, and the repatriation scheme had been a remarkable success. Every Department showed the effects of a progressive policy Our possessions and interets in the Pacific were doing exceedingly well, and Now Zealand was the first country after the war to come back to a 4 per cent, loan. In conclusion Mr Stewart said tho legislative virtues of the Government had been made so thoroughly manifest during recent debates on no confidence motions, that the Leader of the Opposition had to go outside the .Budget to find something on which to criticise the Administration. The fact was, however, that the people would welcome the Budget as one that contained many proposals for the benefit of the Dominion as a whole. The adjournment of the debate was moved by Mr T. K. Sidey, and the House rose at 9.15 p.m. till 2.30 p.m. to-mo:rrow;