MR. M'LEOD'S APPARENT IGNORANCE

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 91, 14 October 1926, Page 12

MR. M'LEOD'S APPARENT IGNORANCE

POLICY CRITICISED.

(By Telegraph.) (Special to "The Evening Post.") AUCKLAND, This Day. In the course of a leader entitled. "Minister and his Critics," the "New Zealand Herald" says: "A brief survey will show what prospect the Hon. A. D. M'Leod offers of replying to criticism by deeds not words. The reference in yesterday's "Herald" to the Umpire settlement scheme seems to have puzzled him, so lie asks for an explanation of 'what the offer of the Empire Settlement Committee is.' It is strange that a Minister of the Crown should need to ask for this information, though Mr. M'Leod's apparent ignorance explains, perhaps many tilings about his policy and his present attitude."

After enlightening Mr. M'Leod as ref|uestod, the "Herald" goes on to state that Mr. M'Leod chooses to interpret the advocacy of land settlement as a campaign to secure an expenditure of borrowed money in the Auckland Province. Certainly any such advocacy must refer to the province, for it contains the largest area calling for development, but the majority of Mr. M'Leod *s critics, certainly the "Herald," would be delighted to see him showing signs of doing something in any part of New Zealand, as a variant of his present practice of offering excuses for doing nothing anywhere. The only grain of constructive policy in, his reply is Mr. M'Leod's foreshadowing of legislation by which the men owning more land than they can profitably work, yet prevented by financial liabilities from subdividing, will be helped to dispose of the surplus in (lie interests of closer settlement. ■LAND PURCHASES BY MINISTER. The article characterises as frankly remarkablq the second of the three alternatives which Mr. M'Leod said he had considered, namely, to purchase' land for settlement and thus to some 'extent prevent wholesale deflation. The "Herald" says: "The worst thing ■about it is that Mr. M'ljeod pursued it to some extent, enabling certain favoured individuals to quit estates at inflated prices, leaving the rest to see the inevitable and salutary process of deflation postponed. Everybody knew land-buying by the Minister must produce this result, but few conceivably imagined this was his set purpose. In such transactions as his recent purchase iii the Gisborne district, it was perfectly apparent on the reported facts of the sale that little closer settlement would result." The leader concludes: "Mr. M'Leod set out to answer his critics. He failed to do so to any extent. Instead, ho revealed himself as regarding the immediate problems of the office in ;t way that nosprevious Minister has ever confessed to surely in the history of the Department. Until he rids himself of such notions, realises that the development of the Dominion's unused assets is a task of which the country cannot, afford to brook neglect, and concentrates Jiis energies on it, ho will be the target of such criticisms as those ho handled to such a poor effect last ■evening."