AVOIDANCE OF SLUMPS

Press, Volume LXXX, Issue 24269, 29 May 1944, Page 5

AVOIDANCE OF SLUMPS

BRITISH POSTWAR PLAN KEEPING UNEMPLOYMENT DOWN (N Z. Press Association— Copyright) LONDON, May 26. The British Government announces a plan to keep Unemployment in Britain to a minimum and to avoid any chance of a slump in the post-war The purchasing power of the community will be influenced by a system of varying contributions within the new social insurance scheme. The weekly contributions will be steppeo. up when unemployment decreases, but when unemployment rises contributions will be cut down and the public will still have the same amount to spend. ... The possibility of a depression will be checked bv spending on public works. The expenditure programme of public authorities will be guided five years ahead. The Treasury and the banks will combine to influence the volume of capital expenditure by variations in the rate of interest. . Taxes in good times may be higher than necessary to provide a carry-over, to be repayable as credits in bad times. The Minister of Labour (Mr Ernest Bevin) said that for 100 years the economic policy had been guided by the Bank Charter Act, 1844. Now, in 1944, the Government proposed to change the policy drastically. The old policy tried to adapt humanity to fit in with the system of exchange. The new policy adapted the system of exchange to the. needs of humanity. Manpower Survey An important provision of the Government's plan was an annual manpower survey t.nd a census of production, which would influence the Chancellor of the Exchequer in drawing up the nation's budget. Capital expenditure would also be planned a year ahead. The Government could organise its internal economy on a comprehensive basis in the full knowledge of industrial and human facts and in the light of the world situation. The ■ Government aimed at abolishing "special areas" and controlling the mobility of labour and industry throughout the whole country to ensure maximum employment, and stimulation of industrial development where it was most required. Mr Bevin said the White Paper issued recognised that unemployment was a disease of the body politic, and that it was the Government's duty to cure it by recruiting the full resources of scientists, sociologists, and industrialists, and also to devote all their energy to its elimination. The White Paper was part of a wide co-ordinated scheme for prompting social security throughout the country, of which the Education, Social Insurance, and Health Bills were other examples, and of which the object was to ensure at least a framework on which future governments could build a society capable of absorbing and utilising ability and classifying the requirements of men and women returning from the war. High Living Standard "A practical expression of an expansion policy" was the term applied by the Minister of Reconstruction (Lord Woolton; to the Government's White Paper on employment policy. Lord Woolton said that the White Paper presented a new approach by the Government in relation to employment. It was new because, it dealt with the problem of curing unemployment. It meant maintaining a high standard of living which involved a high standard of consumption for the people. He wanted to get the people with money to spend to buy goods produced in this country and to provide employment for other people • in this country. The Government proposed, he said, that as soon as it saw that there was an impending falling-off in consumer demand, it would take steps to increase the spending power of the public. On the other hand, if it saw the demand over-runjiing the supply, there would be an artificial check on expenditure. One main object was the maintenance of an increasing standard of 'living for all, and in doing this Great Britain would have to import considerable quantities of food. "We can no longer pay for our imports by interest on foreign investments, as these investments have largely been sold to pay for the raw materials necessary for the war," Lord Woolton continued. "We will have to pay as we go, and to do this we must expand our export trade *by increasing the efficiency of production and finding overseas markets." x They had shown that the skill and adaptability of British industry was as high as ever, and there was encouragement and hope for the future. The Government aimed at ironing out slumps and depressions, which only favoured speculation. What was needed was a steadily increasing volume of employment and consumption. The White Paper accepted the principle that it was the Government's responsibility to anticipate problems and to plan ahead to avoid them. POLISH-SOVIET RELATIONS (Rec. 8 p.m.) WASHINGTON, May 23. "The Polish Government in exile is ready to reach an understanding for collaboration with Russia," said the Polish Ambassador to the United States (Mr Ciechanowski). He added that there had been persistent rumours of new Soviet proposals for a RussianPolish understanding,' but he had no knowledge of them. FUTURE OPERATIONS IN EUROPE MR ROOSEVELT'S VIEWS WASHINGTON, May 26. Asked about the invasion preparations at his press conference to-day, Mr Roosevelt said: "The word 'invasion' is not adequate to cover the tremendous things which are going to come off in Europe some time this summer." He added that the coming operation should rather be called "liberation" because it would liberate the oppressed people. "Our post-war planning is progressing far better than at the corresponding stage of the last war," said Mr Roosevelt. "It aims at trying to eliminate a third world war. Russia is an active and satisfactory collaborator in post-war planning." ALLIED BOMBING RAIDS GOEBBELS THREATENS REPRISALS LONDON, May 26. Goebbcls, in an article in "Volkischer Beobachter," says that Allied airmen, not content with the haphazard bombing of residential districts, have begun openly machine-gunning and murdering civilians. "It is little wonder, when people see children murdered in cold blood, that they are seized "by a raging wrath." adds Gocbbels. "It is now possible only by armed guards to protect from the fury of the people the airmen who are shot down during such attacks. It is hardly endurable that German police and ?ol* diers should be used to prevent th? German people from dealing with these murderers as they deserve. "If this disgusting state of affairs goes on, the world will see that we have ways and means of defending ourselves against these crimes. We owe it to our people to see that they are not treated as fair game."