PRESENT POLICY CRITICISED

Evening Post, Volume CIII, Issue 152, 30 June 1922, Page 8

PRESENT POLICY CRITICISED

OTSCOSSIONWT HOSPITAL BOARD HAVE NEW 2KAIANDEES BEEN

DISMISSED?

„- 3Th6 Government's immigration policy ißame m for some criticism at the meeting of the Wellington Hospital Board yesterday afternoon/ and Mr. O. H. .Chapman expressed the opinion that it had brought about the present unemployment position. .

> The matter arosej through , a report from the chairman of the Social and Welfare Committee (Mr. G. Petherick), covering a period of two years. This showed that 26 new arrivals in the Dominion had applied for relief within six months of their arrival, 11 within twelve anonths.of their arrival, and 10 within (two years,:;.;;:'-" '.',. „ "". ' ' : .«■' Theßev.Dr.- J; Kennedy- Elliott said that the figures by no means covered all <frhe cases of destitution. Many people had come to him—men who -were led to ibelieve that they would get work as soon dfe they landed, and many of these people had' not known that they could extpeot assistance from the board.- • 'i Mr. C. M. Luke said .that it was very (gratifying to know that there were' so tf ew cases; he thought there were more. i The opinion was expressed by Mr. J. W. Butler that many of the immigrants 'Who needed relief had themselves to Wame, and no one else. He knew of a case where, the Government had offered a roan no less than three, jots in different jJarts of the country, but' he had turned them all-down without a good reason. That man probably, went about slandering the Government. Most of the people who came before the committee had Seen handsomely treated by the Government, which" had ircine to a great deal of trouble to place the men. He agreed ■that there w^aa.a great deal of distress in the community at the present time, but the trouble was that-a great many of the people would not make^ their wants iknoivn, as far as the Charitable Aid ■Board was concerned. They, -were mei-ely suffering'- in silence. ■• • They were all hoping that the Government, assisted by the City Council, would do what it could for the -unemployed, but, as far as they (were concerned, there was no reflection ion the Government., ' / ,

-■THE' GOVERNMENT "ATTACKED. ',' If the ■ Government could not ; be Warned, then he did not know who could be blamed, said Mr. C. H; Chapman. There was not the slightest doubt that' owing to the publicity of th# Government with regard-to the alleged conditions, in New Zealand, a much larger liumber of people came put to New Zea : land than would have done so otherwise. He had interviewed a number of 'immigrants who had come to New Zealand, and were out of work. They were now wishing that they had not come, for they had left good jobs to come out tere. ■'A member:" Greed." ;: Mr. Chapman:,. " Greed ! ; They are getting their full share, of .unemployment now." The cases cited could easily be doubled. It-was a significant fact, at least, that the rations supplied by the board had increased' by 50 per cent, in the last two years. ',■" Mr. Butler: " The increase is not due to the immigrants." ■> Mr. Chapman: " No, but the immigrants are depriving other men of jobs. The Government is discharging men so that the immigrants can have jobs." Members:." No!" Mr. Chapman: "I can prove it. It was done in the Railway Department." Mr." Chapman went'on to say that private employers were also to blame. He knew one firm that brought out.ten men under contract. When these men arrived , the men who had been holding down these jobs during the war were discharged in order that the firm's contract could be kept. The men brought out under", contract. were discharged after twelve months' employment, and a society with -which the speaker was connected, had been helping one of the men to keep going. The whole system of j immigration took no cognisance whatever of the conditions in New Zealand. It seemed that it had been merely established to depress wages; that was the only actual effect of immigration. j "THE FIRST CLAIM." Mr. E. Vine said that from the point tof view of the Social Welfare Committee ihe fact that only twenty-six out of forty-seven;sought relief in the first six months seemed to show that the immigrants were settling down well under their new conditions of life. The remarks made by.Mr. Chapman had not |been received with as much credence by .ihe members of the board as they should Save been. There was no doubt that 'many cases could be cited where immigrants, had. been put into jobs while , other men had been put out. The majority of the unemployed were New Zea-' • land-born, and they should be allowed ' the first claim "on the available work of ■ the country. On the other hand, the great majority of the men and -women brought out from England were placed in jobs. . Mr; Butler: "Lithe country." Mr. Vine: "And in the town as well." :, a surprised Member. ' . ,'; ■ "I am very surprised at what I have ■ heard this afternoon," said the Rev. H. -iVan Staveren. "We are hot here as ;a body to slate the Government for its immigration policy. We are not here as politicians, .but merely as members of a Hospital Board. We have asked for a report, and we have got it. What else do you want? . . .There are many out of work who are praying to God that no work, will h^, found for them; that shows how necwry it is to bring out men who are willito and able '^tp work., Many: people ate receiving -rations from us through no fault of their own, but there are" ma y who have neglected their families through drink flnd -other-circumstances. I have been challenged to say that at the board table, but I say it now."

, Mr. J. Glover said that the return would be of -greater value if it showed ■how many applications there had been "during the last three or six months, and how long the applicants had been in the Country..

There the discussion closed,