EFFECTS OF LABOUR LEGISLATION

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 151, 23 March 1938, Page 12

EFFECTS OF LABOUR LEGISLATION

Mr. S. G. Smith Attacks Government Policy “THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE FOREIGNER” Dominion Special Service. Carterton, Al arch 22. After remarking that New Zealanders born and bred had to take a greatei interest in rhe government of their country, Mr. S. G. Smith. AI.P. for New Plymouth, in an address on behalf of the National Party at Carterton tonight said that an opportunity was coming to save the country from the philosophy of the foreigner, and if the electors were true to the traditions ot the British race there would be an end of the Socialist Government at the next general election. An audience of about 300 gave an attentive hearing to Air. Smith, who accused the Government of breaking promises and emphasised the ramifications of its legislation. The mayor of Carterton, Mr. D. L. Taverner, presided. Members of the Labour Party were going around the country trying to persuade the people that the present prosperous position of New Zealand was due to the legislation of the Government, said Mr. Smith. That sounded lovely, but it was not true. The real reason for the prosperity being enjoyed was that the farmers could produce ad article for which they could get a higher price on the Home market.

Transport Legislation. , Wonderful legislation had been passed in the past two and a half years, and if anyone present had lost his means of livelihood by the operations of the Transport Act he would know what the speaker was talking about; he would not like it, but that had happened to numbers of people and he had no right of appeal to the ordinary courts of law and justice. The Alinister of Transport, who was in the position of a dictator, stated recently that no services were to be in competition with the railways, said Air. Smith, but when he arrived back in Wellington he was told he should not have sni'il that in view of an election in a few months’ time. The Alinister accordingly had made another statement that transport would not be nationalised. Referring to the Petroleum Bill, Air. Smith said he came from a district where a search for oil had been carried on for 60 years and more than a million gallons of crude oil had been refined by a small company. Yet all their rights were going. The big companies had the right to put their bores down on a farm and all the farmer would get by way of compensation would be for the surface damage. Big oil companies could not go on Government reserves without the consent of the Alinister, but they could go on the ordinary citizens’ property with the consent of the Alinister, but without the consent of the individual affected. Compulsory Unionism. One of the most rascally and uu-Bri-tisli things that had ever been done in this country was making unionism compulsory, continued Air. Smith. No man cojtild get a job on public works until hq became a memljer of the New Zealand Workers’ Union and he had to pay 25/- a year whether he was an ardent Conservative or an ardent Liberal. Out of that sum 2/- went to the Labour Party campaign funds, and a further 2/- to the party’s newspaper. AA’as ever a more rascally thing done in New Zealand? he asked. Every week thousands of workers who had no .sympathy with the Government had to contribute to the party funds. That smacked of Russia, and what an uproar there would have been if they Had had to pay into the Coalition funds. There was a dictatorship of trade union secretaries who were calling the tune and the Government was dancing to it.

When Labour were in Opposition they had made many flamboyant speeches to the effect that if they were on the Treasury benches for a few days there would be no able-bodied men out of work, said Mr. Smith. They bad not lK?en able to carry that out; at the present time there were 22.000 on unproductive works. The problem of unemployment had never been tackled by the Government. Air. Smith said lie sympathised with those who were unemployed during I hi l depression, but he pointed out that New Zealand had paid the highest rate of relief of any conn try in the world. The Guaranteed Price. Tiie guaranteed price Mr. Smith characterised as a fixed price with the right of commandeer by the Governinent. Russia had nothing on New Zealand in that respect, he said, and if Stalin came here he would blush with shame. The policy of the National Party was to give back to the farmer (he right to handle his own products. “A ghastly, -farcical, chaotic failure.” was the description the speaker gave to the State housing scheme. He argued that the tenants were paying in rent for the extravagance of the department. What was the sense of liuilding State factories and putting private businesses but? he asked. It had been demonstrated, too, he said, that private builders could erect houses jus- as good for a smaller rental. The National Party believed in some old British traditions, and it would see ■ that everyone in New Zealand had an opportunity of owning his own home.