THE LABOUR LEADER

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 121, 18 November 1931, Page 10

THE LABOUR LEADER

SPEECH AT DUNEDIN

REFORM CIRCULARS

(By Telegrapn.—Press Association.)

DUNEDIN, 17th November.

'The leader of the Labour Party, Mr. H. E. Holland, to-night addressed one of the largest political meetings ever h.eld at Dunedin. Over 4000 people were present, both the main Town Hall and the concert chamber being, crowded to the doors. Mr. Holland reached both audiences by means of loudspeakers. . •; .:

Mr. Holland's address followed closely on the' lines of his speech at Christchurch on the previous night.

The Eight Hon. J. G. Coates's speech in the North held out no hope of betterment in the position of tens of thousands of men and -'women registered as unemployed, and other and greater numbers of workers who were only intermittently employed, said Mr. Holland.. Circulars issued by the Reform Party and Mr. Coates during the sittings of -the \ special Economic Committee and after the formation of the Coalition completely disposed of Mr. C'oatcs's claim that the United and Reform parties had pooled their political resources for the sole purpose of facing New Zealand's greatest econorric crisis.

According to the Eeform Party's first circular, said Mr. Holland, the setting up of the special Economic Committee was "a complete admission of the incompetence of the Forbes Government to devise a policy," and the United Government's call for a National Government was "obviously an electioneering stunt in the hope of saving the United Party from extinction at the, polls." Almost at the same moment that Mr. Coates was telling Parliament that "the time has arrived, and tho time is here now, when one could do nothing else but pnftlio country's dire necessity before any other consideration," the same gentleman was explaining to his own followers that Mr.

Forbes's Government had accepted the Reform Party's policy and that party was not involved in any sacrifice of its separate identity. It appeared, said Mr. Holland, that the Coalition manifesto was being issued in instalments. The second portion had appeared in public print that flay, and the third instalment would bo awaited with keen interest.

The new instalment contained the boast that "Recent writers overseas had given high praise to New Zealand" because of the Coalition policy, but in the Eeform Party's first circular it was clearly explained bow the opinions of the London "Times" regarding New Zealand were manufactured. In that circular it was explained that the New Zealand correspondent of "The Times" was a leader writer on the AVellington evening paper; that this gentleman sent his statements to London, where they duly appeared in "The Times," and were then cabled back to New Zealand with all the authority of "The Times" behind them. Mr. Coates could probably tell them that the opinions of other papers were similarly manufactured. . :.