THE LEGION AND NEXT ELECTION

Evening Star, Issue 21711, 4 May 1934, Page 13

THE LEGION AND NEXT ELECTION

POLITICAL ACTION NO MORE LAISSEZ-FAIRE TACTICS In an address to the Hull Valley division of tho New Zealand Legion yesterday, Dr Campbell Begg, the dominion president, made it clear that the Legion intended to take an active part in the next election. There was no intention of opposing certain valued members of tho throe present parties, but others would be nominated in such a way ns to secure a majority in the House determined to carry out essential political and administrative reconstruction. Dr Campbell Begg also referred to tho complete revolution in Great Britain, which had replaced the policy of laissez-faire by economic planning. He said that the policy to increase the local production of foodstuffs in England -was based on the necessity of national security, and would not be abandoned. There would no doubt be a sigh of relief to think that in New Zealand we had the courage to face the difficult road of economic planning to replace the spasmodic and irritating “ interference ” of the past. We'had now to face the fact that we had no machinery of government capable of carrying out any continuous policy. Unless that machinery was amended the goal of tho least possible interference with individual activity compatible with tho interests of the country and other / individuals could not be carried out. Laissez-faire in politics was, unfortunately, still the policy, of all parties in the field, and until that was altered it was impossible for New Zealand to launch 1 out on a bold plan of reconstruction. The Legion’s proposals for an Economic Council, built up from the organised economic life of the community itself, and the co-ordination of local body activities by shires, were the only constructive programme-that bad been brought forward. UNITY GOVERNMENT ESSENTIAL. The details were difficult, but by no means insoluble, and the evils of party government could be controlled in no other way. The urgent need at the present time was a Unity Government, which must include the Labour side of the House, with clear intention to take a bold lino of action. The vital questions of political and administrative changes to meet the new economic situation could no longer bo shelved without grave danger to the country. Dr Begg said that he had carefully, •analysed the Labour Party’s proposals, and "he could see no recognition of this fact in them. It .was apparently the intention that, if in power, the party should handle such matters as the national control of currency and trade with no other machinery than that of the Government caucus as at present. The present Government and the parties composing it adopted a similar attitude. ' .

ACTIVE IN ELECTION. Tho Legion’s duty was clear enough. There were individual men in the Labour Party, as Independents, and in the other parties, who were of great value to the country through their presence in the House. It was, however, the plain duty of the Legion to secure a majority in Parliament who. would abandon the hopeless attitude of laissez-faire adopted by outworn political institutions, and so readjust the machinery as to meet the new' and much more exacting demands of government, while preserving intact the substance of democracy. The Legion bad to mould a machinery which would take an active part in the coining election, and the function of this machine would bo to assist the return of those members of the House on all sides wdiose power for the service to the country had been proved, and at the same time the return of others wdio were prepared to carry out the full programme of political and economic reconstruction. It was possible their activities might not prove 'attractive to the existing party organisations. VOTE-SPLITTING BOGY. Tho cry of vote-splitting had been raised by both parties, and of five two the Labour Party might have more grounds for such complaint than the Coalition. An analysis of the voting in the different electorates showed indubitably .that there was a large group of progressive-minded people who, in the absence of a third candidate of their own type of thought, voted for Labour or did not vote at all. The system of preferential voting advocated by the Legion w r ns simple and effective. The time had passed, talk of “ mushroom growths ” notwithstanding, when any of the existing parties, whether Reform, Labour, or United, could imagine that it had bought/ out the monopoly of electoral lights. Preferential voting of a scientific typo w'ould break up the tyranny of the party nominations, whereas the present system of first-past-the-post, beloved of the parties, resulted in defeating tho will of the electors. Ho believed that under tho Nansen-HogbeiT system this form of voting could be made a true .and simple test of the electors’ wishes, and any party that tried to defeat this aim by nominating dummies or otherwise would burn its fingers badly. He said frankly that the country was “ rotten ripe ” for a group wdiieh would lead boldly to political and economic reconstruction, with full knowledge of the world trends to wdiieh w r e must conform in these days of rapid change. New Zealand had to slough off the shibboleths of insularism and progresskilling conservatism, as w-ell as the fear of sectional interests, wdiieh had been tlie curse of our political life. The Legion’s plans not only provided high ideals in national life, but practical proposals for their fulfilment. Organising and educational activities bad been our role up till now. We must in future have action for pur •watchword. Unity in national spirit and unity in government was the aim, and he believed that the whole country would respond and get behind them in their efforts.