SUBSIDY PROMISED

Evening Star, Issue 20129, 20 March 1929, Page 3

SUBSIDY PROMISED

FOR LEGITIMATE PRODUCTIVE WORK PRIME MINISTER’S STATEMENT DEPUTATION ON UNEMPLOYED On Ids train journey to Dunedin yesterday the Prime Minister (Sir .Joseph Ward) tv as met by a deputation from the Otago Labour Council on the subject of unemployment. Mr J. W. Munro. M.P., 'stated that the position was acute, anti immediate action of some kind was necessary. The City Council at its next meeting would consider a recommendation from its Finance Committee in regard to the raising of a loan ol .CJo.OOH lor the relief of unemployment, but (be point be wished to stress was that, the City Council, if it bad to rely upon it-- own resources entirely, would tail, whereas with assistance Irom the Government the community would ho tided over the. winter fairly siiceosslully. lie would like H;r .Joseph to make souie statement in respect to the- possibility of the conned getting a T for C subside on its loan. In the past the hands of local bodies had been lied in regard to the use oi subsidies, which were forthcoming only lor money actually spent in wages. I! the Prime Minister could sec Ins nay to providing a subsidy on the loan the council uiuiid have no didienlty in finding the work for all the married men to do throughout the coining winter. Mr .1. Pobiiison also pointed out the seriousness ol the position, and gave instances of families in dh tress ami ot men sleeping out. •‘lt is no u-c sentimentalising, said ihc Prime Minister at tins poyit, ” and nothing can he gained by making the po-ition appear worse than it really i-. In the lirst place yon put a (piostion to me in a telegram the other da v w hich no Go\ eminent i onld he expected to answer oli-hand, hut I replied saying that 1 would find employment lor (illy married men at once. Vet when another MinGler armed in Dunedin he was met by a deputation that told him that no repl\ had been received to an urgent request for assi -lance. Thai m iml, I lie wav to help the unemployed. I am personally fairly well acquainted wit.li the position 'ot lho unemployed throughout ),eiv Zealand, anil the continual requests, almost doinanils, which are being made to m- amount almo-l to asking the Government to teed the people. V. hat. yon have ,inst told me would sngge-t that Dunedin is allowing people lo starve, and 1 am mu prepared (o think that that is true. Continuing, Sir Jo-eph -aid that it wa- the lir-l time that that aspect ol the ca>e had been presented to him. despite the lari, that other centres were equally as hard hit a> Dunedin. The Government, was doing all iteonld, and he did not. like to hear talk ol delavs in providing rebel. Ine Govoriimenv. was already employing 10, (JIM) men - a greater number limn had ever been employed bet ore tinder the same eireunisti'nces— -and he could assure the deputation that no more mini would ho put on nmess ho wa' convinced that some results would he obtained from their work. The Government could not, allord (o employ nmn on anv hut productive works. ” For i list a nee.' ’ said the Prime Min-ist-T. “'yon have repeatedly urged npen me lately the necessity lor immediately proc-ailing with the duplication ol the Fort Chalmers railway hue. Me simply cannot start work ql that hind when 1 1 11 1 r;; is no ot tlu'P.' ever being a decent return lor the money exp-, tided. This duplication will do no good when it is completed. r l ho line does not pay, and there is _ not the traffic lo make it. pay even iq it were duplicated. Instead ot putting men on to .such work the Government might just as well make them a pte<,ol!t of* the money it would cost. 'I ,)e Government is simply not goin;g to attempt any sin-h projects anywnere in Xew Zealand unless it is lirst assured that it will pay. Non'.' ol the short distance lines are paying now, so we cannot, spend any more money oil them.” The Prime Milii-ler said that I lie Government was anxious to alleviate ami prevetd hardship wherever d was. Different things had been done all over the country, and the Government wardoing everything it could, in Dunedin as well as the other centres, hat whatever was done had to lie practical. “So far as the questioned a subsidy on the City Council's C2b.(H)O is concerned.” said Sir Joseph, ‘‘ I am finite prepared to consider it so long as the work the council intends putting in hand is legitimate productive work, and not merely maintenance operations, which are the obligations ol the ratepayers. We cannot be expected to provide inonov for unemployment, rebel if that money is going to he spent on works that are a charge on the ordinary rates ol the city. I ben_ there m another aspect ol the po.-iliun tnat was brought to my notice in Wellington the other dav. Tim way lhe unemployed are being treated in this country is attracting men From Australia, and that sort of tiling cannot he tolerated. Wind von have to remember is that the Government is doing more (ban has over been done belore, 11 we had been hanging off there would have been some reason (or the censure, butivo are at our wits end to find a .solution for the problem. Someone Inis to provide the money. There is no doubt about, that, hut where is it to come from ?

Mr Robinson asked the (’rime .Minister if he could think" ol any works in the vicinity of Dunedin that could he put in hand to afford the necessary relief.

The Prime Minister said he could not think of any s.neh work''-, and he could not he expected to give an undertaking offhand. It was now a matter for the Citv Conned to submit particulars of the work it _ intended to put- in hand to the Public Works Department. .If it were lonnd that the corporation was prepared to ttndertako the right class of work", the Government would contribute willingly towards the cost in the tonn ol a subsidy. The Government had already provided kl.’.5(1.00(1 for the relief of unemployment, and only last week he had consented to the payment of a C’Jo.011(1 .subsidy to the Wellington City Conned, and he could assure them that Dunedin would get the same treatment. Mr Robinson maintained that the Stale, through its immigration policy, was responsible in large measure for the position to-day. and in his opinion it was incumbent upon the Government to find immediate means for overcoming the difficulties. It should find re lief in the meantime.

Sir Joseph replied to this, savin" (hat it was quite true, but where the Government and 'lr Robinson differed was on the matter of how the rebel’ was to he given. Work had been I'omul for fifty married men on the Hnwcaliuast Pass road, hut they had turned it down as unsuitable. They would

rather be deployed on :i 1) 11111 O'oi 1 no! Ivo w oik like the (lupilealion ol tin' Pori Chalmers railway Into, because it. was nearer home. Tin.* Government, "ts already hard at work hading cinploymcnt lui those who needed it. Prevision was already made lor Inna o. ,H G lo III,Util) mure men il they were iortnconiine;, two new - railway works having been put in hand, while another was under consideration. The Government had no power to pay men lor doing nothing, and the creation ot a sound economic system was one that would rocpiirc the best brains in the country. A> far as the Government being responsible lor the blunders ol tbe past waconcerned, it should be remembered Unit, it could not loot the bill nnle-s the people were prepared to come torward and pay. Asked by .Mr .Mimni if In l would make a (lelinite statement In allay some of the anxiety that was being felt in the city. Sir Joseph Ward said that w hile he was in I nvereargi il he would have with him several Ministers ol the Grown, including Mr Taverner, and lie would go into the whole position with them, but he could assure then that if the Dunedin Gity Council Inutile right type of work to pul in ha no I here w ould be mi dilficulty wlmlcver in regard to the subsidy. They must be practical works, and the Government must get Mime results Irom Us payments. As soon as an agreement was reached with I lie Public Works Department on the question ul the nature of the work' he would give instructions for the payment of the subsidy. The question ot instituting n system of fortnightly payments lor .relief workers instead of the existing monthly payments was raised by Mr Robinson, who said that it was imposing an nii necessary hardship on the men. especially these who were up against it, to pay them once a montm. The Prime Minister said lie would look into the matter, but be understood that there was a very good reason lor the coarse that was adopted.