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Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22371, 7 April 1938, Page 10

“The policy of the Government is to secure national o.wnership of the whole of the transport system; on the other hand, we shall do our utmost to allow the individual to make a fair living on the road,” said the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, speaking at Mangere on Tuesday night under the auspices of the National Party. Replying to an interjector’s allegation that the previous Government had socialised the industry, Mr Coates said it had merely determined what were conceived to be fair limits to healthy competition. To-day a taxi business was being conducted by the State in competition with private enterprise and, if the Government were returned to office, all rqad transport services would be nationalised.

“In the rural areas settlers must have the service they require,” declared Mr P. O. Skoglund, the No. 2 Transport Licensing Authority, at a sitting at Palmerston North recently. He had heard of one case of a licence-holder being asked to take a ploughshare into town to have it repaired, but the man had refused “because he did not have a licence for that.” That was ridiculous, said Mr Skoglund. No one would prosecute a man for a thing like that. It was absolutely necessary that the country people should receive service.

“Do you not think it is time that men got out of politics altogether and gave women a chance?” asked a member of the audience at Mrs W, A. Bodkin’s meeting in the Returned Soldiers’ Hall at Dunedin recently. “Men have made an unholy mess of running the world,” the questioner added, “and I think women should have a chance to show what they can do.” Mrs Bodkin said she hoped that when candidates were being selected members of the party would give their preference to the most able person, whether a man or a woman, although she would like to see one or two women candidates for Parliament under the party' banner, -