“CHALLENGE OF 1948”

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25380, 31 December 1947, Page 4

“CHALLENGE OF 1948”

MR HOLLAND ON STATE CONTROL

‘•The year 1948 presents itself as a year of challenge to the nations of the earth, and no less to the people of New Zealand,” said Mr S. G, Holland, leader of the National Party in a New Year m Altlfough more than two years had passed since the end of the second world war, the brave new world and the ’’new order,” of which so much had been heard during the war years, had not yet materialised, he said. No one could say the period since the end of the war-had been notable for peace, harmony, and progress. For millions of people, conditions .since the worst of the war period had improved only to the extent that they were no longer in physical danger, and no longer subject to the tyranny of Nazism. Otherwise their conditions of life had actually deteriorated, and the solution of their problems was being obstructed by suspicion, friction, and widespread underground Propaganda. “The challenge of 1948, said Mr Holland, "is that in a worid torn asunder by conflicting ideologies, rea son and righteousness shall prevail. A situation in which any one nation, or the representatives of any particular ideology, can obstruct the peaceful aspirations of the peoples of ’the world should not be permitted to continue “We in New Zealand must help Britain to the fullest extent of our ability. Britain is to-day paying the price for her war-time sacrifices, particularly in those fateful days when s! l e stood alone, undaunted and undefeated. It is a price that no nation with such a proud record should have to pay and every other country should therefore be doing its utmost to assist Britain in her hour of need. “We should remember with gratitude the generous contributions which the United States of America has made and is still willing to make to assist world recovery. Co-operation and harmony between a united British Empire and the United States is the hope df the world. I believe those two nations will accept the challenge of 1948, and, having accepted the challenge, will not be influenced by any other consideration than the welfare of humanity in general.

Challenge to New Zealand “For New Zealand, too. 1948 is a year of challenge. The same conflict of idealogies which threatens to divide the world into two opposing factions is present to a large degree m our own country. Here, too, we have restrictions on personal freedom, a continuing shortage of goods, the rising spiral of inflation, and the problem of regaining a stable price level. All these difficulties, which press so heavily on people in every walk of life, are a challenge to our wisdom and determination.

“During the war we cheerfully surrendered. in the common cause, many traditional liberties and privileges which we had always regarded as inseparable from our British way of life. Naturally it was understood that all these hard-won rights of the people would be restored when victory had been achieved. It therefore came as something of a shock to the people to be told, in the dying hours of the recent session, that many war-time controls were to become a permanent feature of our social organisation. Only a most determined resistance on the part of the Parliamentary Opposition prevented that legislation from reaching the Statute Book, but the public have received a warning which they cannot afford to ignore.

“For 12 years now including six war years, we have seen the steady growth of a system of State control or national socialism, with its attendant network of controls, regulations, permits, and licences. Where has all this got us? The answer is that there are far fewer goods and services available to the people. We have tried issuing money without goods, but the .only effect has been a further increase in the prices of goods already available, and a further curtailment of normal living standards. Incentives and Production “The challenge of 1948 is whether the people of New Zealand will turn from this socialistic system, under which the State dominates the lives of the people, to one which will make for co-operation and harmony, giving an incentive to greater effort, and a fuller volume of goods through scientific methods and treater efficiency. “We can approach 1948 with the high hope that such a change is coming about. Recent election trends in Australia and Britain, the municipal election results in New Zealand, and by-election results in the last year, culminating in the National Party’s striking gains in the Westland byelection, encourage the thought that a decisive change is at hand. People now realise that there are no shortcuts to prosperity. More than ever it can be said that what we take out of life depends upon what we put into it. “The opportunity to develop to the full the genius and latent energies of our people, so that we may replace restrictions with freedom, do away with shortages, and attain a stable price level, is now within the grasp of the people themselves.”