NO PRYING

Evening Star, Issue 22367, 17 June 1936, Page 14

NO PRYING

GOVERNMENT WON'T HARASS _ INDUSTRY JUST REFEREE TO SEE FAIR PLAY [Per United Press Association.] WELLINGTON, June 16. A suggestion from Christchurch that the Government intended to appoint accountants to investigate the affairs of important firms, particularly to see the effect of the new industrial legislation, was specifically denied by the Prime Minister (Mr Savage) in an interview to-night. . . , 11 Such a suggestion has no foundation at all, said Mr Savage, “ because it would imply for one thing that the Government is out looking for trouble. As I have said time and again from the public platform and elsewhere, we have no intention whatever of harassing Dullness people and obstacles in their way. At the same time, this does not mean that the government will not watch very closely any tendency on the part of industry to take undue, advantage of the changed conditions. There can be no argument against the fact that if one industry is allowed ex ploifc the people ani) make undue profits it can only do that either at the expense of some other industry or of the consumers. \Ve intend to Wtitcli ue - " velopments of that sort, and if necessary to make use of a.* the powers that are already available under the Board of Trade Act for dealing with exploitation. “In the meantime,” Mr Savage added, “ our desire is to play the part of referee, seeing that both sides got a fair deal, because wo have already recognised that the man who pays the wages is entitled to consideration a* well as the man who receives them.”