COMMON IDEALS

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 51, 2 March 1937, Page 11

COMMON IDEALS

VICTORIAN VISITOR

GUEST AT STATE LUNCHEON

A luncheon to the Hon. H. S. Bailey, M.L.A., Chief .Secretary of Victoria, was tendered by the NeYv Zealand Government today. The Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage) presided, and the guests included Mrs. Bailey, the Minister of Education (the Hon. P. Fraser\ and Mrs. Fraser, the Minister of Labour (the Hon. H. T. Armstrong), the Postmaster-General (the Hon. F. Jones) and Mrs. Jones, the Minister of Lands (the Hon. F. Langstone). . and Mrs. Langstone, the Attorney-General (the Hon. H. G. R. Mason), the Minister qf Internal Affairs (the Hon. W. Parry), the Minister of Mines (the Hon. P. C. Webb), the Leader of the Legislative Council (the }Hon. M. Fagan), Sir Charles and Lady.Statham, Mr. R. H. Nesbitt, Mr. J. A 1.1 Lee, M.P:, and Mrs. Lee, Mr. R. McKeen, M.P., and Mrs. McKeen, Mr. R A Wright, M.P., and Mrs. Wright, the Hon. V. A. Ward, M.L.C., and Mrs. Ward, Mr. C. H. Chapman', M.P., and Mrs. Chapman, Mr. J. Robertson, M.P., and Mrs. Robertson, the Hon. T. Brindle, M.L.C., Mr. C. A. Jeffery, Mrs. French, Mrs. W. E. Barnard, Mrs. Moffatt, Miss McKittrick, and Miss Evelyn Hall.

In proposing the toast of "Our Guests" the Prime Minister said that New Zealand always welcomed visitors from overseas, especially Parliamentarians. The Dominion Government was endeavouring to raise the social and economic life of the people, but did not claim it knew- the last word on everything. The New Zealand Government was always anxious to exchange ideas with people in other countries who were imbued with the idea of raising the standard of living of their people and who had concrete proposals towards that end to put forward. The people of New Zealand and Australia had many common ideals, and each country could contribute to the welfare of the other. The people of the Southern Hemisphere had a destiny, which could best be worked out by constructive co-operation, and the more they understood one another the greater would be their progress. Mr. Parry: What about reciprocal pensions? . ■■ Mr. Savage: I think that is a problem we may consider. He said that it was the object of the New Zealand Government to have a system of reciprocal pensions throughout the British Commonwealth. The Government hoped, in the next session to inaugurate a system of health insurance and superannuation which would be universal.

They desired to free from the minds of the people the dread of poverty in their old age. ■ .. Mr. Savage said that they might also settle the question of oranges and potatoes, which was becoming a joke among the people. All that was wanted was a common understanding. In reply, Mr. Bailey said that his Government, the Country Party, was being kept in power by the Labour Party, which had rendered them valuable assistance. He added that Victoria had much to learn from New Zealand's prison system and from the Dominion mental institutions, and he woud advise his Cabinet to base their reforms in this connection on New Zealand's institutions. He also commended the Dominion's system of third party risk, which was the best he had seen in any. other part of the world. He congratulated the New Zealand Government on its programme for the welfare of, the country.