The Gisborne Times FRIDAY. APRIL, 26. 1935. MR. LLOYD GEORGE'S “NEW DEAL” CAMPAIGN.

Gisborne Times, Volume LXXXII, Issue 12537, 26 April 1935, Page 4

The Gisborne Times FRIDAY. APRIL, 26. 1935. MR. LLOYD GEORGE'S “NEW DEAL” CAMPAIGN.

; When Mr. Lloyd George produce,d his New Deni for the Homeland, lie ! received very little, encouragement | from Government quarters. Jn strict i fact, some members of Cabinet treated it to a. very cold douche. But the veteran (and still remarkably vigorous) statesman was not in the slightest degree perturbed. He proceeded, as is well-known, with a stirring enm- | paign in a number of important centres and succeeded in inflaming the imagination of large bodies of the | electors. What seems most to have appealed to his hearers was that section of his plan which aims at returning the world-ess to essential, reproductive work and do away, as far as possible, with the wretched dole system. Mr. Lloyd George had, of course, no difficulty in showing that there are many public works which might profitably be taken in hand ; that money for the purpose has never, for more than a generation, been cheaper nor more plentiful; and that suitable workers in their hundreds of thousands are simply clamouring for sonic useful work. Everywhere he went, he reminded his hearers, in telling words, that the British nation did not stand for unemployment being perpetuated on a huge scale and that it held the present Government to blame for not having faced the groat problem with adequate vision. How well Mr. Lloyd George lias done in connection with his campaign may he judged from the fact that a special committee of Cabinet is now engaged upon the task of going into the details of his national rehabilitation plan with him. Strange as it may appear, he has to thank sonic of the “shell-backs” on the Tory side for the more kindly interest which the Government >s. now manifesting in his ideals and his ideas. What happened, as far as can ho gathered, is that they went to their party chiefs and demanded that Mr. Lloyd George should be given a failhearing ! When. the, depression first struck Britain, the Government was inclined to the viewpoint that extensive State works would prove ; the only satisfactory paliiatiyo. Subsequently, .however, it settled ( upon a plan which amounted to encouragement to local bodies to pursue public

works (especially housing) coupled with an unemployment insurance scheme. On the other hand, the Roosevelt Administration in the United States now pins , its faith on a huge programme of public works as the best means of circumventing unemployment. Strictly speaking, ther<p sis a danger of much waste under any scheme of State works, great or small. The best method of fighting a depression would probably be to en r courage private, enterprise to reexparid its activities'. But what' cannot be overlooked is that only a spectacular' display of. confident spending on the part of the State would be likely to bestir private enterprise to a useful degree. In [Britain, Mr. Lloyd George insists upon, the raising of what ho designates a, “Prosperity” loan. That is what has long been required in this Dominion, where taxation continues to he intolerable and relief is so badly needed.