RECONSTRUCTION

Greymouth Evening Star, 8 April 1943, Page 2

RECONSTRUCTION

MR HOLLAND’S VIEWS

CHRISTCHURCH, April 7. ' “I have nothing in common with the man who makes a god of money, . said the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Holland, M.P.), when addressing the New Zealand Geographical Society in Christchurch this evening. “The war is being fought in the mam by the workers. In my opinion tnose men will have fought in vain if they have to come back to another slump. Such a statement, continued Mr Holland, might sound strange com-j ing from a member of his party. But at the period of the last economic de- | pression, he reminded his listenei s j (the majority of whom were young people), he was not associated with it. “I have no wish to castigate them, he proceeded. “They did what other governments did in other parts of the world —they cut wages and reduced pensions and caused untold misery. But the world has learned a great deal since then.” The subject of Mr Holland s address was reconstruction within New Zealand, and his was one of a series of addresses on this aspect of postwar development. In any new order, as far as New Zealand was concerned, said Mr Holland, the fear of unemployment had to be removed. What had been termed “the giants of sickness, squalor, ignorance, and unemployment,” had to be destroyed. “There is no reason why men who are willing and able to work,” he added, “should not have employment.” , , ~ Mr Holland believed that after the war there would be a world-wide clamour for foodstuffs. It was essential, therefore, that New Zealand should increase production. It was necessary that the Government should apply science in industry as never before. Science, he said, was inseparable from production to-day. However, there would be no prosperity in New Zealand unless there was success in production methods in the country. “Because it is the country that gives us the whole of our overseas purchasing power,” he said. “The workers, in my opnion, have in this war won the right to work,” he continued, “and houses are urgently required for them. I believe that between 50,000 and 70,000 houses are necessary: but we cannot construct them unless we have the skilled labour and trained instructors. What we get out of this new order —and I believe there will be a new order —is just precisely what we put into it, no more and no less. We can have it if we are prepared to work for it. But we will never get a new order unless we work for it ourselves.” , , It was essential in the speaker s opinion that any new order should be based on Christian principles: it could never be brought into existence unless there was a change of heart on the part of the people. Human happiness and human security had to be placed in the forefront; selfishness had to be eliminated. “Personally, I have no sympathy at all with the money-grabbing capitalist,” said Mr Holland. “But at the same time, it must be remembered that there is no short cut to a new order, and we must never at any time remove the incentive for production. No government can give to the people by way of gratuities, pensions, or any other benefits, unless it is first taken from the people. It is not so much money that counts to-day as goods and services.”

“If the incentive to* produce were removed, he said, there would necessarily be fewer goods for distribution. There was room for a higher standard of living morally, but that could not be brought about until the people also practised higher morals. •Selfishness must go,” said Mr Holland. “Otherwise, the old order that we have known will remain. Service must be our watchword in the future.”