WANTED: A BETTER SYSTEM OF REPRESENTATION

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22195, 11 September 1937, Page 20

WANTED: A BETTER SYSTEM OF REPRESENTATION

TO THIS BDITOB Of TBX PBBSS. Sir,—You might possibly wonder how I as a working man, could say anything in criticism of our humanitarian Labour Government, but, like a good m any who profess to be goodl T,oor its members never forget their Snal out of office. the Nationalists were elected lor tne ordinary Parliamentary term of three without a mandate from the neoole the Nationalists made it four. Now our humanitarian Government is preparing thVway for a longer parliaStery g tenn up' to five years by a mandate from the people. . The thing that makes me want to see a better system of government is Sat I have always been opposed to the Labour and capital system, which is always tearing this country to pieces and should have been scrapped long ago for a better system. I am not writing this with a view to damaging the Labour cause. I want to see Labour in its proper proportion for all time in a way that will command tne respect that is due to Labour. I came to this country before Labour had a vote, and I have lived to see the women get the franchise; and for this reason I want to see women in the House, administering for women, which is their proper function. The domestic side in politics belongs to women, Just as when a, man marries his wife she takes charge of the domestic part. There are domestic women, also women trade workers, businesswomen, and professional women/numbering almost as many voters as the men. We have a House of 76 members, and what I want to suggest is that the voting power be split into three parties of equal numbers: Labour 25 votes, National 25, and give the 26 votes to the women and make them the centre party., Our mothers were all women, and some of them could give their male opponents all they wanted .in .argument, which might be all to the good. As things are going, nobody knows what to expect next, for the high standard of wages set up means that all things manufactured in New Zealand will have to be consumed in New Zealand, as there will be no outside market for them. Stabilisation will be impossible, and I claim that the direct taxation that is imposed on the working man goes a long way to discount the rise in wages. W<? have to commence with a poll tax ol £1 a year, a union fee of £1 5s a year, followed by a wages tax, followed by a sales tax, followed by the 40-hour week, which means that employers have to pay 80 days' wages a year to every employee, one day for each 52 weeks in the year, plus 28 holidays. Now we come to the housing scheme, in which six days* wages are given for five days'- work. That means that the sawmiller has to raise his prices 15 per cent (that is the 40-hour week rise). He passes his timber on to the merchants, and they have to pass the rise on to the building contractor. Then the carpenters at 3s an hour strike for another 2d an hour, | and again for morning tea and a long smbke-oh. What a joke! Labour pays !for it all out of the election slogan, "The bigger the wage the bigger the spending power."—Yours, etc., F. GREAD. I Ataahua, September 9, 1937.