POLITICAL ARENA

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 22, 26 July 1933, Page 11

POLITICAL ARENA

FARMERS' VOTES

WILL THEY GO TO LABOUR ?

SPEECH BY ME M CLEOD

An address to electors of Upper Hutt was given by the Hon. A. D. McLeod, M.P. for Wairarapa, last evening. There was a good attendance. Mr. J. J. Mahcr presided. ■ •

Mr. McLeod said that recently he had occasion to travel in many North Island rural electorates, and everywhere he found a great deal of political unrest, and dissatisfaction amongst all sections of tho people. Since tho last General Election political Labour had everywhere gained ground, and Douglas Credit Socialists were assisting Labour greatly in some electorates. In New Zealand small traders, with small business and professional men, had always, in conjunction with small farmers, been a steadying political influence in rural electorates. Today, largely as a result of high taxation and city Press propaganda, country business and professional men felt that too much was being done by the present Government for farmers. On the other hand, farmers were complaining that not enough was being done by tljo Government on their •behalf. Personally ho could only say that farmers as farmers were no moro entitled to special consideration than were any other sections of New Zealanders. In saying this, ho felt that ho was expressing the opinions of the heads of the present Government, a? Tvell as his own. It was tho condition of the farming industry itself that was causing grave anxiety to tho heads of the Government, and should be causing grave anxiety to every man and woman of the Dominion, Two years ago ho had stated publicly to electors that unless some means could be devised to lift the wholesale values of farm products in Now Zealand, it could only be a short period before all sections of New Zealand's peoplo would suffer. Today this unfortunately was the case, and, as was usual with all democracies, the blame was laid at the door ■of the Government. Political Labour in New Zealand had at present n, great advantage in that it had never held office, although where it had held office elsewhere in tho Empire it had on no occasion improved conditions, not even those of Labour itself. Although the farming voto was tho largest sectional vote in New Zealand, yet in no rural electorate did farmers' yotcs exceed one-third of the total vote. Socialism or anti-Socialism would be tho test at the next General Election, . and wit,h a section of farmers apparently going Socialistic, it would . appear as if Socialism must win. Whether this would bo a good thing or a bad thing for Now Zealand only tho future could toll. ■ For himself, ho would be found fighting Socialism as practised in the world today, as he had no reason to believe that Socialist Labour in New Zealand was any different from Socialist Labour elsewhere in tho Empire. THE EXCHANGE QUESTION. Throughout tho world today, statesmen were in agreement that values of farm and other primary products must be lifted if further drastic deflation was to bo avoided in other directions; but as the World Economic Conference showed, they wore by no means in agreement as to how this could best Tio brought about. In the meantime, propagandists and extremists associated with all sections wero busily at work further complicating real issues. As an illustration, certain propagandists were asserting that New Zealand's peggingup of the exchange was the reason for Denmark's doing the same. What were the facts? New Zealand did not peg up exchange until January 20, 1933. Following tho Ottawa Agreements, Denmark found her exporting industry going from bad to worse. In the middle of January, 1033, Danish employers gave necessary notice of a lock-out, involving 150,000 of their employees. With 200,000 of her 3,500,000 of population already unemployed, Denmark's'' Parliament sat until January SO, when exchange was pegged up as tho only alternative to further inevitable drastic deflation, if her foundation primary industry was to be saved. DERATING OF RURAL LANDS. Regarding the cry for. total derating of rural lands, this, of course was an absurdity, said Mr. McLeod. Eural ratepayers, however, had a genuine grievance respecting a continuation of tho seizure, by the Consolidated Fund, of money originally designed for roads and bridges on highways. Necessity, of course, knew no law, and a, continuation of the seizure had only the same justification as tho highwaymen's justification. What wou-ld bo said if a Government placed a 100 per cent, tax on electricity for Consolidated Fund purposes? Yet a tax on the uso of electricity would bo as fair as a tax on benzine. Many out-of-the-way settlers used benzine for" tho production of electricity, for milking, for shearing, for pumping, and many other moro or less necessary purposes, and were compelled to pay for Consolidated Fund purposes over 100 per cent, taxation on the landed cost of benzine. A good deal of benzine was used 'for what might bo termed pleasure or unnecessary purposes, but the sarno could be said of electricity. Before the advent of highways legislation and taxation, many local authorities taxed their ratepayers for forty years ahead to provide funds often up to 75 per cent, of the cost, for bridges of a lasting nature. Less progressive local authorities wero now receiving from highways funds up to 75 per cent, of the cost of similar structures, whilo people who did not fully understand the true position were advocating a compulsory amalgamation of rural local authorities. No Government una'hlo to grant inducements for amalgamation of rural local authorities would last a day if legislative force was attempted. '.Personally, he had always felt that as s»on as possible after tho passing of the highways legislation, highways funds should have been made available, firs*, lor meeting interest on loans past and present raised by local authorities for highways purposes; and next for maintenance as far as highways revenue would permit. Ho believed that this would be an inducement for local authorities to spread special loan interest of separate districts over the whole of the local authorities' territory, and also induce tho doing away with' differential rating within local authorities' boundaries, a system, which in times past had been tho main cause of the creating of smaller and smaller local authorities. Other matters dealt with by Mr. McLeod are reported elsewhere in this issue.