LABOUR’S POLICY

Evening Star, Issue 20942, 5 November 1931, Page 3

LABOUR’S POLICY

ADDRESS BY MR HOLLAND IMMEDIATE REINSTATEMENT OF UNEMPLOYED USE OF CONSOLIDATED FUND [Pbk Umitid Pxbb* Asbocutiom.} WELLINGTON", November 4. Labour’s election policy "'as eminciatod by tbo party leader and Leader of the Opposition (Mr H. .L. Holland), when Ivo spoke this evening to a largo crowd at the Wellington Town Hall. Mr Holland dealt with a wide range of subjects, including unemployment, land settlement, taxation, finance, and credit, interest charges, and the Arbitration Court. The rehabilitation of industi’y, he contended, was the only solution of the unemployment problem. If a Labour Government were returned it would make immediately further provision for the unemployed from the Consolidated Fund, while additional grants would be made to the hospital boards for the relief of distress. At the conclusion of his speech a resolution was carried unanimously, in which Mr Holland was thanked for his address and confidence was expressed in the Labour Tarty and its policy. LABOUR FORCED ELECTION, Mr Holland said the country owed to the Labour Party the fact that elections wore to ho held and that in consequence there was to be no wholesale .disfranchisement of the electors. It was regrettable that the Government was not yet willing to allow the people to know the precise date of polling. There was no reason why, under ordinary circumstances, the date of the General Election should not bo known to the public. The contest this year found that tho two anti-Labour parties had at last been driven into one camp, desperately defending their combined policy against the attack of Labour. The issues at stake wore greater than in any previous conflict, and the forces which Labour was mooting represented a combination of vested interests and money power. That combination proposed to remedy the eyils of depression by dragging the community down to tho uttermost uneconomic level. As against this the policy of the Labour Party was one of constructive processes, making for rehabilitation. The Coalition was fighting this election on the Reform Party’s policy. The United Party had surrendered to tho historic enemies of the party Jed by Ballnnco and Seddon, and the last vestige of principles of tho old Liberal-Labour alliance had faded permanently into the shadows of political intrigue.

REORGANISE INDUSTRY

In the statement of the Government’s policy recently broadcast by Mr Coates there was nothing whatever to indicate that any better provision would be made for the unemployed.. The statement contained remarkable official contradictions of the Government’s administrative policy. The employers were urged to ration work when business was slack, but when the mines were • deprived of railway coal orders and the men wanted the work to -bo rationed instead of having a number dismissed, tho Government stood in with the coal owners in refusing to allow this to bo done, Tho Labour Party held that the only solution of the unemployment problem was the rehabilitation in industry of all who were now unemployed or working part-time, and this should be, done on wages that would provide a reasonable standard of living. _ A Labour Government would make immediate further provision for the unemployed out of tho Consolidated Fund, and additional grants would bo made to hospital boards for the relief of distress arising from unemployment. To meet the general situation it would organise the industrial resources of the country on modern lines, A courageous policy of primary and secondary industrial development would be undertaken with a systematised productive effort and a planned output. For this purpose internal credits would bo arranged, with the Government, the people, and the banks co-operating. The work undertaken would be of a productive character and their credit facilities would be organised so as to fit m with the volume and the value of production. The purchasing power of the people depended upon the level of income received by the wage and salary earners. Wage reductions meant a depreciated local market and consequent trade stagnation. Hence there could be no return to prosperity until there was Restoration of purchasing power, and there could be no restoration of purchasing power without a rc'turn to a living wage standard. The evidence of tho wholesalers, manufacturers, and retailers before tho special Economic Committee abundantly proved that the cuts already made had reduced their turnover, and in consequence had increased their cost per unit of output. The first task to bo undertaken by a Labour Government would be that of getting the unemployed back to productive work. An equally important task would be tho restoration, especially of tho lower wages and salaries, to the purchasing standard before the cuts . wore made. Tho Government in its determination to interfere with tho Arbitration Court’s awards was merely following tli© course dictated by the Employers’ Federation and other interests. The Labour Party would retain a method of industrial conciliation and compulsory arbitration, not because it was satisfied with everj' decision of the court, hut because tire Labour movement in polities subscribed to the principle of arbitration as somewhat better than the lock-out and strike. BANKING AND LAND SETTLEMENT. In the present crisis the credit system in private hands had practically broken down, and there was a marked lack of co-ordination between finance and industry.'' It was imperative that’ tho State; should take a more effective part in controlling currency and credit. To this end tiie Labour Party would take steps to establish a centra! bank under the control of the State. This bank would have the sole right of note issue. Pending this change, the regulations governing the issue of notes by private banks would be extended, and under tho existing banking laws the Labour Party would raise sufficient credit for immediate industrial , purposes, employing methods somewhat similar to those adopted during the war. In that period there was no difficulty in raising money. Tho Labour Party proposed now to use the national credit for the purposes of economic reconstruction and rehabilitation. The present banking laws would permit this to bo done. Tho sum of £25,000,000 spread over a three years’ period would bo sufficient to put tho dominion once again on its feet, 'flic evidence of hankers to the Special Economic Committee indicated that (his money could lie raised.

In administering its policy of land settlement the Labour Party would give careful attention to the selection of suitable men in addition to those who were already employed for tho work of preparing for the immediate settlement of largo areas of Crown and other lands, the men taking part in such work and willing to become permanent settlers to have preference in taking up the laud when ready for settlement. SECONDARY INDUSTRIES. To facilitate the development of the secondary industries of the dominion an industries development board would ho appointed to co-operato with the Government. Every encouragement would bo given to the upbuilding of such industries. Provision would ho made for the regulation of importation into New Zealand of goods, the like of which wore being produced in New Zealand. Immediate inquiries would be instituted for tho purpose of arranging definite trade agreements between the dominion and other parts of tho British Commonwealth and other countries in order to increase the market for dominion exports. Investigations would also bo made into the possibility of arranging with the primary producers to co-operate with the Government for a guarantee of the price for primary products. Tho Labour programme provided 'for an extensive scheme of main and secondary highways construction, and particularly the construction of roads to backblock districts now without adequate road access. Effective reading was an essential part of the economic organisation of tho country. The Government’s decision to subsidise the purchase of fertilisers was a solitary move in the right direction, and in making that move the Government had followed the Labour Party’s motion moved by Mr M. J. Savage last session, but the present subsidy did not go far enough. It covered only certain classes of fertiliser. The recommendation of the rural economic advisor was that all fertilisers should lie subsidised. This was a sensible course to take.

TAXATION. Mr Holland declared that in the case of mortgaged farmers with £3,000 to £5,000 unimproved value, no benefit would accrue from the removal of the graduated land tax, while these men would now have to pay income taxation. Ho was not objecting to the obligation to pay income taxation, but merely pointing out that the smail farmer was not benefiting by tho change. On tho other hand, the largo landholder would have the graduated land tax removed, while the income tax would not be increased by anything like the extent of tho benefit he would receive from the removal of the graduated land tax. Generally speaking, the principal beneficiaries would bo the large concerns, such as the banks, etc. With a largo number of scattered properties tho owner of £20,000 unimproved value would benefit to somewhere in the vicinity of £BO, while an unimproved value of £120,000 would bo exempted from the payment of nearly £3,000. In the case of income tax tiio increase on a £350 income was nearly 214 per cent., while that on £I,OOO income was only 47 per cent. While the conditions demanded it tho Labour Party would impose an additional supertax on higher incomes and a supertax on dutiable goods which could be produced in New Zealand. It would also place a special emergency tax on investment incomes ■ that were free from taxation. It would remove the primage duty and would also abolish all indirect taxes on foodstuffs and other necessities not produced in New Zealand.

THE WHEAT QUESTION. Dealing with the wheat question, Mr Holland said that the Labour Party would institute a comprehensive investigation into the whole question of tho production and distribution of wheat, the wheat and Hour duties, and Hour production and distribution fincluding the operations of Distributors Ltd.). Its, object would be to ensure the production of . wheat and flour in sufficient quantities and the supply of bread and also of animal foods at reasonable prices, while at the same time guaranteeing an adequate return to the wheat fanners and standard wages for tho workers employed in the ‘wheat areas. Wheat growing was an industry natural to New Zealand. They could nob allow it to bo destroyed, and neither could they leave the 'dominion, at the mercy of outside countries for one of tho staple food items. PROVISIONAL MORATORIUM. Tho Government’s only solution of tho interest problem as it affected the primary producers was a moderate extension of the Mortgagors’ Relief Act, an enlargement of the powers of the court to enable that body to make such remissions, reductions, or postponements of interest on existing mortgages as it might deem advisable. The main weakness of this proposal was that it placed on the mortgagor the obligation to move to the court, and in many cases the legal charges would bar tho mortgagor from claiming relief. The Labour Party’s proposal was for a provisional moratorium to prevent foreclosure, and machinery for mutual adjustment. If within three months of tho passing of‘legislation no agreement should bo arrived at, a 20 per cent, reduction would operate, witii the right of appeal by the mortgagee or lessor, as the lease might he. The evidence tendered to the Special Economic Committo on behalf of stock exchanges, slieepowuers, and stock and station agents, favoured interest reductions. There were others, of course, who emphatically opposed even the suggestion of such a course.

WAGE AND SALARY REDUCTION. Tracing tho wage and salary reduction of 1921-22, and the legislation of 1930-31, and the years in between, Mr Holland made the prediction that if the Coalition should retain tho Treasury benches there would bo either wholesale dismissals or further heavy wage and salary reductions, or both, covering economics totalling from £1,000,000 to £1,500,000; that all classes of pensions and allowances would be cut down, tho. wages tax increased, and every industrial award and agreement placed in jeopardy, together with substantial tax reductions to the wealthy land owners and the men with larger incomes.