The Dominion THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 1932. NOT CHOICE, BUT NECESSITY

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 170, 14 April 1932, Page 6

The Dominion THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 1932. NOT CHOICE, BUT NECESSITY

Fair-minded people will sympathise with rather than rail at Lie Prime Minister because he has been compelled by the national emergent.} to introduce such a measure as the National Expenditure Adjustm - Bill. No one likes it, least of all Mr. Forbes and the members or his Government who have to bear the odium of performing unpopular task—unpopular even though it is in the public in * eres p . .. The facts being as they are, the conclusion is inescapable that, since there,is less to go round, everyone must do with less, Un 111 - best-informed estimates our national income has fallen in two yean by £6O millions, from £l5O to £9O millions. If some peoplei claim that they should get as much out of the reduced aggregate as befo , it follows that all others must receive much less, and , all. The Government in the Bill before Parliament seeks to avoid so one-sided an arrangement. It is trying to spread the loss evenlj, so far as is possible within the limits of legislation. That, surely, is a worthy objective and a fair proposition. Vi me . of us would not, if circumstances arose, accept a reduced ration so that all might be served? Which of ms, in case of necessity would insist on our full pound of flesh, refuse to take less no matter who else might suffer? The circumstances have arisen, the necessity is here and now. Where is our sense of fair play, or our manhood, it we decline to join in the sacrifice and, by our refusal, make smalle the share of others ? The policy of the Government is designed as tai as possible to secure equality and prevent any sectional hogging. While, however, it is easy to approve a general plan,. it untortunately is not so easy to accept it as applied to our individual case. When it comes to our turn to forgo a percentage, most ot us can think only of our own loss, forgetting that others have been mulcted. By exploiting this unreasonable but quite human feeling the egoism that extinguishes altruism—the wily agitator can make much political capital. Such are the present tactics of the Labour Party. Mr. Holland and his colleagues should realise the necessity enforcing all-round reductions. They choose to ignore it, nevertheless, and to pose as the people’s protectors against tyranny. Also, by abuse and misrepresentation, they seek to direct discontent against the Government. Its members are presented as tyrants and robbers. t many people had not, in these hard times, lost their sense of humour, they would see how ridiculous such a picture is. . The members ot Cabinet are average citizens, with the same human instincts as the rest There is this difference, however. Being elected on a universal franchise and responsible to a democratic House, they are more prone to err on the easy than on the hard side. For years they have been more accustomed to give than to withhold, following the lax tradition of the last 40 years. Nothing but the direst emergency would persuade them to use such drastic measures as are now proposed. Such a conclusion is only reason and commonsense. As Mr. Forbes has said, the alternative is national bankruptcy. New Zealand cannot go on spending as before when, as already mentioned, receipts are down by 40 per cent. Or take the Public Service as a separate case. Public revenues fell from f 25 millions in the financial year 1929-30, to f2O millions in the year ended March 31 last. For the current year the economists’ estimate is £l7| millions. If the Government continues to spend this year at the rate of 1929-30, that is, at about £2 millions a month, it will have exhausted its income within nine months. ; That is why the Government wishes to husband the country s resources—to avoid insolvency and the complete destitution which would follow. To abuse Mr. Forbes and his colleagues for thus trying to make ends meet and stave off a desperate situation is the sheerest folly. Instead of standing aside, and even throwing stones, it behoves all men of goodwill to co-operate with the Government in its effort to sdve the labouring Ship of Sta’te.