AUSTRALIA'S PLIGHT

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 39, 16 February 1931, Page 9

AUSTRALIA'S PLIGHT

NO HELP FROM LONDON

TILL ATTITUDE CHANGES

Dnited Press Association—By Klectric Telesjraph—Copyright. i (Received 16th February, 9 a.m.) LONDON, 15th February. The "Observer," after referring to New Zealand's bold and brave attempt to face realities, says that the adoption of Mr. Lang's scheme would destroy Australia's credit abroad and impoverish thousands of citizens at Home. Lang's parallel of the American debt settlement is wholly fallacious, but Mr. Scullin's proposal to lengthen the war debt redemption period is quite another thing. The "Observer" declares that Mr. Theodore's limited inflation plan is specious. Australia is not yet out of the wood. A financial commentator writes: "Since the proposals for the rehabilitation of Australian finance are now a question of politics rather than finance, it is difficult to pronounce on them without entering the political arena. Bankers and financiers here are disinclined to public utterances, being very chary of any appearance of unwarrantable interference in what a section of Australian opinion might regard as largely a domestic concern. Nevertheless, financial opinion in. London definitely condemns Mr. Theodore's proposals scarcely less than Mr. Lang's, though after tho first shock the latter were realised to be impossible. Tho city argues thus: Tho Commonwealth is iv sore straits through the world slump in commodity prices, coupled with the orgy of borrowing from 1922 to 1928. The operation of economic laws blocks tho royal road to prosperity. The only exit is through drastic cuts in Government expenditure, reduction in national costs of production, and the abandonment of the traditional policy of overseas borrowings. While Australian politicians fail to face the realities, they cannot bo helped. So far their uttrranccs indicate that they are too frightened by their constitu•onfiina to adopt drastic measures or are not capable of realising the situation. "London, pending an alteration in the position, cannot offer tho assistance, which otherwise sho would give most willingly. Whatever Mr. Seullin's motives were in reinstating Mr. Theodore, has action has greatly damaged his prestige here, since financiers aro already familiar with Mr. Theodore's views, and always regarded them as utterly unsound, apart altogether from political considerations."