SELWYN SEAT

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29368, 22 November 1960, Page 18

SELWYN SEAT

Mr Palmer At Halswell

“If there is any one in this room who can honestly say that he is not better off than he was three years ago, I challenge him to get up and say so,” said the Labour Party candidate for Selwyn (Mr J. Palmer) of some 35 persons in the Halswell School last evening. There was no reply to Mr Palmer. Mr Palmer began his address by discussing his party’s administration as the Government during the .difficult time of the “Black Budget” in 1958. He said that it was only the courageous policy of the Labour Party, which imposed import control, increased taxes yet kept unemployment from the shores of the Dominion, that pulled the Dominion through.

“Mr Holyoake asserted at the time that there was no crisis in New Zealand in 1958. Two leading papers in the country took him to task editorially and told him he didn’t know what he was talking about,” said Mr Palmer. “llowever, I don’t want to go over the past, I much prefer to look into the future.”

The Labour Party promised, if re-elected, during the next session to raise personal tax exemptions and look into hire purchase agreements and the rates of interest charged. In matters of health the party would raise the amount paid to doctors for treatment of patients out of the social security fund. “After all, it’s long overdue. It was 7s 6d in 1938 and its still the same today,” said Mr Palmer. The Labour Party, while the Government, had abolished compulsory military training and for this had been severely criticised by the Opposition who, while not promising its reintroduction, said they would have a new look at it.

Praise for the job done by Mr Algie, under National, and Mr Skoglund, under the present administration, for education was expressed by Mr Palmer. In only three years of the present administration the vote allocated to education had risen by £lom, yet even that was not enough. “We’re still not catching up with new buildings and the shortage of teachers continues to give us a problem.” Of Social Credit, Mr Palmer said they were crusaders. “They work very hard and they think they have a good cause but their voting percentage had decreased in past elections. If there was any country in the world that could have put the Social Credit philosophy into operation it would have been Russia —yet Lenin at the time found it unworkable and unsound.” State control of television, compulsory unionism, recognition of Communist China when conditions were favourable were also dealt with.

NELSON RAIL LINK

“Wicked Waste”

The proposed Nelson railway was; last evening described as a “wicked waste and a squandering of the country’s money to no useful purpose,” by the National candidate for Selwyn (Mr J. K McAlpine) in Hornby. “I know of no greater political scandal in my time,” he said. The Government claimed that development of the Nelson province was sufficient justification for the railway, but the real fact was that they wanted to retain the Nelson sea. I don’t believe railways develop country anyway.” If it was required it should follow a route which would take it through the farming and fruit areas.

Emphasising that many fundamental differences existed between the National and Labour parties, Mr McAlpine, said that although the Prime Minister (Mr Nash) had pledged before the last election to fix the cost of living by means of a price index for food, nothing had yet been done by tlje party. In fact the cost of living had risen by 3 per cent, a year since 1957. “I do not suggest for a moment that the cost of living should be fixed. I suggest we need a small measure of inflation to remain prosperous. One per cent, a year rises is good for the country; but it must be kept in check.”

Outlining the National Party’s policy on voluntary unionism, Mr McAlpine -said that he was in favour of unions but not compulsory ones. “I am a member of a trade union myself, and I am proud of it.

“I am not such a fool to believe that the militant unions will work under a voluntary membership system. I know that the wharfies and the miners will not work alongside non-members. They will evolve their own form of compulsion. It is the moderate unions, the shopworkers' and the clerks', which require voluntary membership,” he said.