LABOUR’S DEFENCE POLICY

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 242, 9 July 1938, Page 12

LABOUR’S DEFENCE POLICY

Complete Co-ordination

OUTLINE BY LEADER OF COUNCIL

Land Forces Reorganised

The statement that the Government was definitely opposed to conscription and compulsory military training and that be believed that in that attitude Xew Zealand was in line witb the attitude of the British people was made by the Leader of the Legislative Council, Hon. Mark Fagan, defending the Government’s defence policy in his speech in the Address-in-Reply debate in the Council yesterday. "I I Link the volunteer system is the best and there is proof of that in Britain,” Mr. Fagan said.

Should the worst happen and war between Britain and a dictatorship nation take place, Mr. Fagan said, the issue would be so real that the response of the man-power of New Zealand in those circumstances would be 100 per cent, in a rally to defend the land. And should there be a 100 per cent, enlistment in an emergency he believed there would be no talk of conscription. But even if there were a 100 per cent, enlistment it would be of no avail if the men were unequipped and untrained. The Government, fully realising that, had been building up a system of defence to enable the land forces to take care of themselves in every way.

“If Britain were involved in a war, then in one split-second this country would be involved too,” Mr. Fagan said. “And it might be unlike the last war. New Zealand might be in a position of not being able to send one man or one shipload of foodstuffs overseas, and In that event the best gesture New Zealand could make would be the assurance that it could protect this part of the Commonwealth. Complete Co-ordination. Mr. Fagan said he was convinced that if an unbiased expert were called in to-morrow be would say that this Government in two and a half years had done more for defence than any previous Administration bad done in double the time. There was now complete co-ordination of the defence arms, and every step taken during the past two years had only been taken after close collaboration with the authorities in the Old Country. Referring to land deience, Mr. Fagan said when the Government came into office in 1935 it found that, because of the depression years, organisation of the territorial force was at a very low ebb. "The land defence forces as we found them were completely disorganised and in a state of chaos,” he said. Out of that the Government had begun the reorganisation. Mr. Fagan said there had been a substantial rise in the recruiting figures in recent months. The figure for June was likely to be 500 recruits, and that was double what it was a year ago. The Minister also dealt with the Government’s measures to place naval and air defence on a better footing. LOCAL BODIES Amending Legislation A number of alterations in the law relating to local authorities are proposed in the Municipal Corporations Amendment Bill, which was reintroduced in the House of Representatives yesterday by Governor-General’s rues'sage. The .38 miscellaneous clauses of the Bill deal with purely routine matters, including an increase in the maximum honoraria payable to the mayors of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. The Bill will give effect to a number of the remits passed at municipal conferences in recent years. The Minister of Internal Affairs, Hon. W. E. Parry, explained that since the introduction of the Bill at the end of last session it had been circulated to local bodies, which hud considered the measure and given it their approval.. The Bill embodied remits passed by various conferences of municipal organisations. "The proposals in the Bill will give local bodies other than county councils an opportunity to bring their organisation up to modern requirements,” said the Minister. "Remits passed annually for twenty years have been ignored. It is pretty disheartening when no notice is taken of remits that are passed year after year.” The Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes (Opposition, Hurunui) : They may not be right then.

Mr. Parry: These remits are considered by all local bodies and should be all right. I am giving them tin? benefit of tlie doubt. The Bill was read a first time.

PRIVATE DISPUTES Arbitration Procedure The procedure for arbitration in the event of legal disputes is to be subject to overhaul as a result of the Arbitration Amendment Bill which was introduced in the House of Representatives yesterday by Governor-General's message. Most of the provisions of the Bill are technical in their scope and are designed to facilitate' legal practice.

Explaining the Bill on its introduction, the Attorney-General, lion. 11. G. R. Mason, said it dealt with the Arbitration Act and hail nothing to do with the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. It referred to arbitration between private individuals and public bodies as a substitute for or a supplement to court actions. The present law in New Zealand was not very satisfactory, as it contained many pitfalls and obstructions to arbitration, which waa more friendly way of settling disputes than faking them to court. "There is no change in the substance of the law." the Minister said. "The amendment straightens out some of the difficulties, and simplifies the procedure generally. Naturally it is of more interest to lawyers than others."

The Rt. Hon. .1. G. Coates (Opposition, Kaipara): Does it cover the whole field of arbitration? "No. If an arbitrator makes a mistake in law it is now very difficult to have it corrected." the .Minister said, “This amendincut simplifies the process. This whs done in Englund some years ago, and should have been done in New Zealand long before this.” The Bill was read a first, time.