OUR IMMIGRATION POLICY

Grey River Argus, 17 October 1922, Page 3

OUR IMMIGRATION POLICY

I I“LABOUR STARVING FOR WANT GF WOBK.” : “This country is starving for ward j of labour,” declared Mr McLeod ii . the House the other day, intcrruptiuf Air Howard’s speech on the immigra lion schemes of the Government. “Am Labour is starving for want of work,’ came the retort from Mr Howard ,“What we want is organisers, and w< 'cannot get them.” An Hou Member: Wo have not the money. Air Howard: Oh, if to-morow morning -we find that ihcnv j» a war on millions will be provided for the war. 1 'Then why not find the money for peace? i'J'his is a wonderful little country, and it can produce the money. I An Hon Member: Then you try to get. it. Air Howard: The old, old story. The honourable gentleman’s party is in power, and it is making a good old hash of things. As my honourable friend from Auckland said, during the past four years the Government has borrowed £15,000,000. If we go on upon the same scale for another four years the country will be nearly bankrupt. Aly jioint is that our legislation is of a haphazard nature—that it is carried on from day to day. Our business men do not know where they will be next week. They do not know what legislation will be brougit in to handicap them next week. Business is disorganised because there is no stabilisation. No business man knows what he can go in for, for everything is stagnating because the Government has no policy before the country. The Government, policy is to wait and sec till the cal jumps, and then they will t<*ll us which way the fur is going io be blown. That is the point, Mr Speaker, that 1 am bringing forward to-night. In all your matters, and on labour questions you are flouting labour and treating them with contempt, telling them that they do not count in the Dominion; creating unrest right through the Dominion, and all the time preaching hero that you are. helping this Dominion to get over her troubles. All the work of the Reform party is hopeless. No business man knows where ho is, nor can he say what wil happen next week ,or what the legislation -will be next xveek, and in consequence this Dominion is lagging behind every other epuntry.