NO APOLOGIES

Evening Star, Issue 22956, 13 May 1938, Page 8

NO APOLOGIES

MR SEMPLE ON PUBLIC WORKS METHODS LAST GOVERNMENT'S LEGACY " RUST AND RUIN ” (Tee United Pkess Association.] HAMILTON. May 13. Mr Semple, in defence of the Government’s policy and in explanation of the work carried out by the departments under his control, faced a large and enthusiastic crowd at MorrinsyiUe last evening. The Minister explained that when he came into office he took over the control from an organisation called the Co-ordination Board, and thus saved the country £3,000 annually. He could honestly say he had not squandered a ipenny of the .people’s money. The last Government spent £8,000.000 in railways which they did not finish. The part of the line they completed at Uargaville, in the former Minister of finance’s own district. cost £450,000. it would have cost £600,000 more to finish the whole job, but they stopped it, and it was no use to anyone. They also spent £120.000 on the famous balloon loop, which went to nowhere, and then came back again. The last Government wondered whether they should have started the works, and set up a board to advise them on the matter, continued Mr Semple. On the advice of that board they stopped the work, and with the closing of the job at Waikokopu, men and families were left for as long as two years on the site of the job. On another job the tools were thrown into the Buller River, and could be seen to-day. Through these methods the last Government committed such acts of extravagance as this country never previously had seen. They paid 3i per cent, on £8.000.000 and were still paying it, and all they gave was a mass of rust and ruin. He described the result of the work of the last Government on the Mohaka viaduct as another example of wrack and ruin. , The Labour Government had tackled these jobs, and carried them through. “ Under the last Government the methods of public works were the most stupid comic opera procedures ! have ever seen, and all this was done by the man who recently told you that you needed prudent finance. We do not spend money for the good of our health and we do not spend just for the fun of it. However, while transport and other problems are facing the country, any rational man will do all he can to remove them as soon as possible, and that is what we are doing. Certainly we sipent £1,000,000 on aerodromes, but it must be* realised that the growth of the flying machine brought many problems to be solved. To compete with other nations we must have an uo-to-date commercial and military air service Up to the time we oame into office £600,000 had been spent on aerodromes under the old comic opera, wasteful methods, but I could have done the same job for £200,000. We found wheelbarrows, crowbars, picks, shovels, and half-starved workmen—the methods by which the Pyramids were built. We have attempted to synchronise human labour and machine labour, giving the machine the hard work to do. I have introduced these methods into aerodrome construction and apologise to no one for it.”