Interviews With Minister

Greymouth Evening Star, 3 October 1949, Page 3

Interviews With Minister

Sir.—Under the heading “Interviews with Minister,” and signed by “Digger,” I read a letter in the Evening -Star containing what I take to be a grouch. For the information of “Digger” and others might I state that the Reefton branch of the New Zealand Labour Party advertised on or about September 8 inviting organisations and people desirious of presenting deputations to Mr C. F. Skinner, who would be In Reefton on Monday, September 12, and would receive deputations in the Council Chambers, to communicate with secretary, who would arrange a ing and advise the time. This is the course always adopted by the Reefton branch, so that there is no necessity for “Digger” or anybody else to run to hotels or chase the Minister’s car for an interview. Every citizen has the right to approach Ministers. Surely it is not too much trouble to communicate with the branch secretary who draws up the timetable and so saves both the Minister’s and the public’s time. The Minister’s time and that of his staff cost the country money, and should not be wasted. It is for this reason that deputations are heard at the times appointed, and instructions given for no person to be allowed to wait on the Minister at his hotel. None of those who communicated with the secretary (and there were many) objected to this procedure.—Yours etc. P. SALMON, President, Reefton branch N.Z.L.P. Sir. —I think it was Mr R, Semple who said that “Nothing was too good for the returned soldier.” Evidently that is what he is getting (nothing), but for a Minister of the Crown to shake a fellow digger off the running beard of his car is about the limit. The reason these Ministers object to receiving “impromptu” deputations is the fact that they don’t know their jobs and without a huge retinue of understudies and office files they are sunk. What, for instance, does the Minister of Forestry and Lands, Mr Skinner, know about forestry? He only needs to mention timber and one can tell 'he doesn’t know any thing about it. What he knows about land I will leave to the farmer to say. Strangely enough the same lack of knowledge, with one or two exceptions, is common throughout the whole Cabinet. What does Mr Nordmeyer, a former clergyman", know about industries and commerce? What does Miss Mabel Howard know about hospital administration? What do these single girls know about bringing up children, let alone the tougher problems of hospital and charitable aid institutions, mental hospitals and such like? Mr Semple can certainly give an answer to any question put to him and I certainly take my hat off to him as the only Cabinet Minister who has pulled his weight. Mr Walter Nash is frequently called the “Wizard of Finance,” but he is a very over-rated Minister- of Finance. There are a dozen men on the Opposition benches who could run rings round him. He has no gold policy nor any other policy. He cannot give a straight-out answer to anything of any moment until he runs away home and consults his “advisers” and so on. The present Cabinet is made up of experimentalists and opportunists, who cannot see a yard ahead of themselves, and the sooner they are ousted the better.—Yours etc. ELECTOR. Greymouth, October 3.