LABOUR REMITS

Evening Post, Volume CXX, Issue 112, 7 November 1935, Page 22

LABOUR REMITS

WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM?

Although he was subjected to a considerable amount of questioning at the conclusion of his ■ address, Mr. W. Duncan, Democrat candidate for Wellington East, received quite a good hearing at the Miramar South School last night. The attendance was not large, but the proceedings became, moderately lively when Mr. Duncan criticised the policy of the Labour Party.

The Democrat Party, said Mr. Duncan,'believed that the National Government had fallen down on its job, but at the same time it did not believe in the policy of the Labour Party. The Democrat policy was, first and foremost, the establishment of a national development fund with an initial fund of £B,ooo,o(X|,Jor the purpose of putting back into enrptoyment the fifty thousand men now out of work.

Referring to the overhead expenses of the administration of unemployment, Mr. Duncan said that in 1933-34 charges in this connection amounted to £74,000 and in 1934-35 to £112,000. The Government was paying big salaries to high officials, and in the clerical department it took three men to do the work of one ordinary clerk. These heavy charges, said Mr. Duncan, would be eliminated by the Democrat scheme.

On the exchange question, Mr. Duncan said that at the present time exchange was paid to everybody whether they wanted it or not. The small farmer received the same, pro rata, as the big man. There were 300 big farmers or station holders in New Zealand and they took 80 per cent, of the exchange. The Labour Party's guaranteed price plan had the same disadvantage. The Democrat plan of subsidising the farmers was a much better scheme as the money would not go to the wealthy farmers, but to the small farmers who really needed it.

After dealing with the Democrat pro-1 posals in connection with pensions and health insurance, abolition of sales tax, broadcasting, and reduction of taxation, Mr. Duncan referred to a large number of remits, many of which were of an extreme socialistic character, which. he said, had been forwarded for consideration at the annual, conference of the Labour Party. Mr. Duncan read remits suggesting the socialisation of industry, land, and financial institutions and said that evidently the guaranteedprice plan was against the policy of the Labour Party.

A voice: Who said so? Mr. Duncan: Well, the Kaiapoi branch.

A voice: No. you are all wrong. You are quoting things that are not correct. Mr. Duncan said that the Kaiapoi branch had demanded that the Labour Party should abandon all bluff, advocate socialisation, and at no time give the impression that it intended to subsidise private capital. After further questioning, Mr. Duncan said he did not know what had been done about the remits because they had been dealt with behind closed doors.

At the conclusion of the meeting, which was presided over by Mr. J. Levy, a motion of thanks and confidence was carried almost unanimously.