COMMUNIST BAN

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22426, 5 September 1947, Page 3

COMMUNIST BAN

MR. DOIDGE’S PROPOSAL POSITIONS IN UNIONS OPPOSED BY GOVERNMENT (P.R.) WELLINGTON, Sept. 5. A suggestion that a clause making it illegal tor Communists to hold official positions in trade unions should be included in the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Bill was made in the House of Representatives by Mr. F W. Doidge yesterday. The proposal was made during the committee stages and drew a retort from the acting-Prime Minister, Mr. W. Nash, that while he disliked the Communist Party, it would be just as reasonable to ’ debar members of the National Party from holding union office.

Mr. Doidge said that the speeches made on the previous evening by the Minister of Works, Mr. R. Semple, and the chief Government Whip, Mr. R. Macfarlano (Christchurch Central), had made it clear that responsibility tor the industrial turmoil lay with certain strong and arrogant unions, which were Communist lea. The Minister of Labour, Mr. A. McLagan, however, had said that the bill was aimed at no particular union. There was no doubt that the Communists were behind the industrial trouble being experienced today, said Mr. Doidge. Even in New Zealand they had enjoyed much success and, emboldened by it, were .trying to effect a liaison with similar Communist industrial leaders in other parts of the world. The Communists, who had captured leading positions in industrial labour, were laughing in derision at the Minister's endeavour to cope with tiie situation by "feather-duster legisla lion.” Mr. Doidge said he wondered what the Prime Minister, Mr. P. Fraser, though of the bill. In addition to his proposal that Communists should be debarred from holding official union positions, Mr. Doidge suggested that the bill should make it possible to punish leaders when strikes were held, and there should also be power to impound union lunds in certain circumstances.

The member for Tauranga was following his usual custom oi pouring oil on the flames, said Mr. Nash. "Seeing that he has such disagreement with a political party—which I personally do not like and with whose methods 1 disagree—why should it not be asked that members of the National Party be debarred from official positions. Some peopie in this country want lo keep the worker in his place.” Mr. Doidge nad said that he would like to know what the Prime Minister thought of the bill. The Prime Minister had approved of it before lie went away. "This bill was the bill of every member of the Cabinet,” said Mr. Nash.