MR. NASH'S BROADCAST

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 3, 3 July 1940, Page 6

MR. NASH'S BROADCAST

(To the Editor.)

Sir,—l listened to Mr. Nash's moving appeal for our last penny,, for increased production by the farmer, for the need to curtail our personal prejudices and wants. So far as it went, 1 agree with him, but why not a similar appeal to work?

Here is England working 24 hours- a day and seven- days a week, calling: for food and help. What a contrast to New Zealand's 40-hour week, to New Zealand State miners stopping production, because of some minor personal grievance. Are we other New Zealanders to sink our personal feelings and wants to help the Empire, while State employees deliberately stop production of a national commodity like coal because of a personal grievance? Suppose John Citizen said, "I want this or that and therefore shall refuse to pay my taxes." What would happen? Would the Government shut its eyes to this? I guess not! Yet it shuts its eyes to miners who refuse to give it the coal it wants just as much as it wants John Citizen's money.

There is no real national effort InNew Zealand when sections of workers can refuse production without risk of punishment. It moans one law for John Citizen and quite another for men who hang, up needful work. Anyway, a 40-hour week when we want every ounce of work to save the country is not a war effort; it is merely relying dm Britain's 168-hotnr week to beat Germany's "all-in" effort.—l am, etc.,. AJAX.