ROAD TRANSPORT

Evening Post, Volume CXXXI, Issue 27, 1 February 1941, Page 13

ROAD TRANSPORT

LABOUR'S POLICY

REPLY TO MINISTER

THREE QUESTIONS

(By Telegraph—Press Association.) NEW PLYMOUTH, This Day.

"It is amusing to read Mr. Seraple's declaration that it is not the intention of the Government to socialise the transport industry and that socialisation was never even contemplated by the Government," said the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. Holland). "Mr. Semple appears to have conveniently overlooked the objective of the Labour Party, which is socialisation of the means of production and distribution (which includes transport) and exchange. He says that the only thing he is against is cannibalistic competition on the roads. I can think of no better example than the.past gobbling up of privately-owned transport services by the Railway Department.

"I wonder if Mr, Semple will tell us how many motor vehicles previously operated by private enterprise have been absorbed by the State in the last five years, and also if the public could be told: (1) how many privatelyowned services have gone off the road since 1935; (2) how many State-owned and operated services have gone :. off the road in the same period; (3) how many ne\v, privately-owned services and how many State-owned services have come on to the roads during the same five years.

"It is all very well to talk about conserving petrol as a war measure," continued Mr. Holland, "but the important thing to remember is that prac« tically all the socialising that has taken place happened before the war broke out. It would give some indication of the extent that State operation of transport has grown if the Minister would inform the public of the quantity of petrol actually used by the State for the years 1935 to 1940.

"All we want is to see reasonable co-ordination, but the public knows when a reduction in the services takes placs it is invariably the privatelyowned service that goes and not the State service. It is also significant that where privately-owned road services are in competition with seaborne trade they are left, alone, but when in conjunction with the Stateowned railways they are wiped out."