NO AUTHORITATIVE MAN OF FINANCE

Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 49, 26 August 1922, Page 6

NO AUTHORITATIVE MAN OF FINANCE

One of the conspicuoui features of the financial debates of the current Parliament is the absence of a financial critic of standing and authority. Any fairly-balanced Parliament, in a country like.thißj should have at least two authoritative men of finance, one in the G6-: verninent and one in the Opposition ; and the bankruptcy oi! the New Zealand Parliament in this respect suggests that the business community is peculiarly blind to the importance of. Parliament and , Government in the economic affairs of ■ the Dominion. Of course^ business men may retort that the selective judgment of the electors is at fault;, but we do not think that this is the whole explanation (or: even half) of the financial inefficiency of Parliamentarians. It is true that the electors are occasionally slow to observe the Parliamentary qualities of a candidate whose main theme is economics; but if business men of standing were to present themselves for elec : tion, in reasonable numbers and with some persistence, a fair proportion of them would; soon be found in the House of Representatives. ' The cause of their absence lies rather with themselves. They are deeply attached to their own ; bnfiiriesa,, often. a pleasure as well as a profit; they lack time and inclination for party politics j they ; view party hypocrisies and individual /political -,■-." stunts "with cynicism, and thereby are liable to forget that business—even for the sake of its own selfish interests— cannot afford to allow public -finance to become" the plaything of mediocrity. Both for narrow' rea: sons, and for wide reasons of public service, the business community should seek to put some of its best men into Parliament, however distasteful certain aspects of party candidature may be. The existing House of Representatives contains neither a Ward nor a Duthie. And they are needed. •'■ :■