CIVIL SERVICE SALARIES

Evening Star, Issue 21076, 13 April 1932, Page 3

CIVIL SERVICE SALARIES

IMMENSE RISE SINCE 1914 PREMIER ON BUDGET NECESSITIES [From Our Parliamentary Reporter.] WELLINGTON, April 12. That the decreasing cost of living will square the salary reductions to be im- ' posed on the Public Service was the strongest point made by Air Forbes (Prime Alinister) in dealing with this section of the National Expenditure Adjustment Bill in the House. The general position of the dominion’s , finance for the current year was that, despite economies totalling £4,100,000 and additional taxation of £2.200,000, l there remained an unfilled gap of two millions deficit. Last session there was a 10 per cent, cut, but as the cost oi living had dropped by 11 points real wages wore better than in 1929. j Labour Members; Prove it. Mr Forbes went on to declare that it was useless talking about starvation wages when a reduced amount would * buy more food. ( Mr Richards: You are a joke. : The Prime Alinister pointed out that J farm product prices had come down to ; below those of 1914,, when the dominion’s total expenditure was £ll,- ! 835,000, but to-day the expenditure for < wages ami salaries alone amounted to 1 £11,315,000, nearly equal to the whole ’ annual expenditure of 1914. The Go- 1 vernment was told to carry this on, but * if it failed to cope with such a situa- ’ 1 tion the end would not be far off. Na- ' 1 tional bankruptcy was the alternative | to reduced expenditure. Al] Public 1 servants had an interest in the stability i of the State. They must realise that i the ship of State was in difficulties and ( that it was to their interest that it 1 should weather the storm. If any other i course were adopted the time would 1 come when the whole of their salaries i would be in danger. i Air Parry: AVe don’t believe it. I The Prime Alinister referred to scores ; ■ of petitions against further cuts as i tending to cause distress by reducing £ the community’s purchasing power. He, 1 did not agree with that viewpoint,, ( though he had no objection to people i signing petitions while they had no re- ( sponsibility for running the country. ( The, reduction of salaries would place a good many members of Parliament j in a difficult position, he said, because , he recognised that there were heavy expenses involved, particularly where electorates were extensive. Air Parry: And special sessions. The Prime Alinister; Yes, and other expenses. It was felt by us, and members will agree, that where they were asking for a general reduction of expenses they would not be justified in asking that they should be exempt. A question from Air APCombs regard- ( ing Alinisters’ travelling expenses drew from the Prime Alinister the explanation that they were not being further curtailed, as on the occasion of the previous 10 per cent, cut they were reduced from two guineas per day to 30s, a j much larger reduction than that which j took place in salaries. j An inquiry as to whether the 10 per ( cent, reduction in salaries and wages had already been made to Public scr- , vants for time worked since April 1 was made by Air Nash (Labour, Hutt). , The Prime Alinister replied that -when the National Expenditure Adjustment Bill went through the wage reductions would operate as from the first oi the month and adjustments would be made * accordingly. “ The cut has been deducted al- £ ready,” persisted Air Nash. j