The economy

Press, 19 October 1978, Page 13

The economy

Sir, — “Confusion” lies in the mind of the beholder, D. G. Rotherham, not with Social Credit. “The only alternative” is a campaign slogan, not the name of a pamphlet, and to my knowledge at no time has Social Credit ever advocated direct “Government” control of credit creation. As spelled out in Mr Beetham’s New Zealand Credit and Currency Bill, the Reserve Bank is to be a fourth, a monetary, branch of “government,”

equally independent as is the , judiciary and the legislature to the executive, and subject! ; to checks and balances, ves-j ted with the sole right tor create and issue money and| credit on behalf of the;. Crown. The bill places the; i Reserve Bank clearly under! ( Parliament’s scrutiny and| I direction — not the Govern-; ment’s. However, to fac-j ilitate Government economic! management, Section .14 of 1 I the bill lays down 11 condi-! jtions. whereby low-interest] credit replacement, not cred-; it expansion, shall be imple-l men ted, through resolutions: of the House, —Yours, etc., . G. A. CLOVER. I Social Credit candidate, I Papanui. October 17, 1978.

Sir, — Your correspond-] ent, Mr Rotherham, ex-] presses the commonly held i fallacy that the Government] controls the economy. In fact it is the trading banks! who are in real control.] They are the main creators] of credit in our system, | through the creation of] overdrafts which are debts against our future production. High interest rates compound these debts into astronomical figures which we all eventually support through increased prices and heavier taxation. Mr Beetham’s bills aim at taking the right to issue credit from, the private sector and putting it in the hands of the people through their elected representatives, and not into the hands of a party elite in caucus. Then Government services and local bodies would have access to loans without crippling interest. Until this occurs our national debt will continue to climb. — Yours, HEATHER SMITH. October 17, 1978.