ACTION AGAINST NEWSPAPERS

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22243, 6 November 1937, Page 18

ACTION AGAINST NEWSPAPERS

GOVERNMENT AS YET UNDECIDED

“THIS IS ALL GUESS-

WORK”

(From Our' Parliamentary Reporter.! WELLINGTON, October 5. “This is all guesswork,” said the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage) in an interview this evening when he was asked to'comment on a newspaper article suggesting that the Government was contemplating legislative action against newspapers in the publication of all items dealing with politics. The Government, said Mr Savage, had not yet decided on any course of action. The suggestion made in Wellington to-day was that a bill was to be introduced providing that articles and reports dealing with political subjects should be signed by the writers. It was stated that the proposal would apply only to political reporters and commentators, but that during an election campaign all reported speeches would have to be signed by the persons reporting them. Another suggested feature was the prohibition of the anonymous publication of correspondence and interviews of a political nature. The report concluded by stating that the legislation, which would operate from the beginning ox next year, was the outcome of representations by members of the Government party for disciplinary action against the newspapers. After stating that the views expressed were “all guesswork, the Prime Minister said he would prefer not to comment further on the matter until the whole question had been considered by the Government, and until the actual legislation was framed, providing, of course, that legislation was found to be necessary.