REFERENCES IN PARLIAMENT

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 154, 30 June 1926, Page 10

REFERENCES IN PARLIAMENT

POSITION OF OTHER BANKS,

The proposals of the Bank of New Zealand in regard to long-term loans were referred to during the course of the Address-in-Reply debate in tho House of Representatives yesterday. The Leader of the National Party (Mr. G. W. Forbes) said that he did not object to the scheme, but if it was designod to prevent tho inauguration of farmers' credit banks then ho thought there would be trouble, because the large financial institutions like the Bank of Now Zealand wero not out for philanthropy. He objected to tho criticism of the chairman of the Bank of New Zealand (Sir George Elliot) of tho Post Office Savings Bank and the State Advances Office, and commended the letter of Mr. H. A. Huggins in the "Evening Post" recently in which the great work of the Post Office Savings Bank was defended. The Minister of Finance was able to borrow millions from the Post Office Savings Bank at a low rate of interest. When that was pointed out they could understand that the private banks did not have a friendly feeling to the State institutions. Mr. Forbes said that the State Advances Office was doing a groat work, and both that' office and the Post Office Savings Bank were doing work which, in tho matter of salaries alone, was thousands of pounds cheaper than if it were done by private individuals. The Hon. W. Nosworthy: "There ia nothing cheaper in the country." Mr. Forbes said he hoped that the criticisms of Sir George Elliot would not prevent tho Government from carrying out the agricultural banks proposal. He was surprised that the Minister of Finance had not replied to Sir George Elliot. The Minister of Lauds (tho Hon. A. D. M'Leocl) stated that tho Opposition had criticised tho Government in regard to borrowing and mortgages, but it had to be remombered that neither this nor any other country could develop without tho assistance of tho mortgagee. The lending wealth of this country was held in comparatively small amounts. Reference had been made to the Bank of New Zealand's proposals. Ho knew very little about them beyond what ho had read in tho Press, but the Government had stated that any proposals made by lending institutions for the adoption of a system of table mortgages would be given every consideration. The Leader of the Opposition (Mr. H. E. Holland) asked whether the Bank of New Zealand 'a scheme would bo allowed to interfere with the agricultural banß proposal. The Minister said it was hoped that the Agricultural Banking Commission would come back with some proposition that was better than anything tho country had, even tho Advances to Settlers Office. "We are not tied in any way to any institution in the country," said Mr. M'Leod.

Mr. W. A. Veitch (Wanganui): "Is it proposed to amend the banking law to allow other banks to do tho same thing?" The Minister replied that the Bank of New Zealand had not submitted its proposals to the Government, but the Government would give to any other bank the same opportunity that was given to the Bank of New Zealand. That would only be a proper and logical thing for the Government to do.