THE PEACE PROBLEM

Evening Star, Issue 24016, 15 October 1941, Page 3

THE PEACE PROBLEM

PREPARING TO RE-ESTABLISH SOLDIERS DEBATE oh government measure OPENS (V i \ WELLINGTON Oct. 14. ' Moving in the House of Representatives the"second reading o f th e' tatiou Bill, the Minister of ft’ « »" I tl l b: s*ii l t he'3SSSS™«tio« •3^*ntsass^~» era-dual and unless one looked veiy closely one was apt not to This war had already taken some 80,00 meii out of the national life of the Dominion. and in addition a large section of the community was engaged in providing these men with, food and equipment. In wartime the readjustment of our national life to new avenues ot employment was gradual, hut nlicn peaco came the adjustment would be like au avalanche, and unless preparations were made for it, would cause more upheaval than the hostilities had one ‘ . • -i When the war was over, continued Mr Nash, the men overseas would have to be brought hack and put into normal workaday life. It would not be possible to replace them all as they w ould have been without a war, but they should be so replaced as far as was humanly possible. The Bill provided for economic reconstruction, because that was necessarv if the men were to be normally reestablished. The task of re-estahhsh- ■ mont would be a terrific one, but experience could be gained from the lost war, and that should help them to avoid mistakes. The Bill would lay the foundations of a plan which, he believed, was better than anything that had been available previously, and he thought everyone would agree that the sooner- the returned man could be brought to stand on his own feet, ,the better it would, be for him and the country. The disabled men created a separate problem, and every effort must bo made to get them back to a position where they could earn some, if , not all, of their livelihood. Discussing the operation of the Bill. Mr Nash said a Rehabilitation Council would be appointed by the Government after nomination by certain local bodies, and a Rehabilitation Board of six members who would probably be employed full time would also be appointed. The council would bo representative of all the Dominion, and would consider problems of rehabilitation, while the board would see that the rehabilitation policy was carried out. The council would be an advisory body, and the board would be the administrative body. _Mr said the Minister of Finance had said that we should put exservicemen back iu the places they would have occupied had there been no war, but .he (Mr Holland) thought they should go even further than that. Mr Nash: I accept that, too. ■ Continuing, Mr Holland said the only thing that the public demanded was that the job should be done well, and he considered that the expense of rehabilitation was just as much war expense as the provision of tanks, guns, and munitions. Wo should be able to undertake the task of rehabilitation well, ho added, and if wo were wise we would profit from the experiences of the past, not only from the mistakes, but also from the good things that had been done after the last war. The first essential-. _was to see that tour ek-servicemen received justice, and he would make a idea that any aid we gave to servicemen should not be confined to those who (to use the vernacular) 1 were •** broke.” Such a course, he said, would be unfair to the thrifty ex-ser-viceman. We must also avoid giving them any idea that they were receiving patronage. Another suggestion lie would make was that the rehabilitation of the returned men should be administered by ex-servicemen, because there was nothing that made them more discontented than having theiv affairs administered by non-servicemen. Mr Holland also stressed the importance of it being made clear that the Bill did not provide a substitute for bard work, and that all ex-servicemon should realise that there was no short cut to success. He suggested that a non-party parliamentary committee should be set up to prepare a scheme of rehabilitation. Mr Holland also advocated the establishment of vocational training centres for returned men. He considered that the Bill was a disappointing one, and said it gave an unidentified Minister unlimited powers. Apparently Parliament did not count. Actually no plan was disclosed in the Bill, and the soldiers were entitled to expect something better than was being provided. If the Government gave the Opposition a chance to co-operate it would contribute of its best. Replying to an interjection by Mr Doidge, the Minister of Finance, during his speech on the second ‘ reading of the Bill, intimated that returned men settled on the land would have the. right to acquire the freehold. Thp Minister of Industries and Commerce (Mr Sullivan) said that ex-ser-vicemen would not only bo represented in a substantial way on the board and the council under the Bill, but they would play au important and inspiring part in connection with the administration of the whole scheme envisaged under the Bill.

The debate -was interrupted by the adjournment at 10.30 p.m.