THE GREY RIVER ARGUS WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17th 1925. THE PRIME MINISTER'S MILLIONS.

Grey River Argus, 17 June 1925, Page 4

THE GREY RIVER ARGUS WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17 t h 1925. THE PRIME MINISTER'S MILLIONS.

In his electioneering speech on Mond.'iv •'tl Pnltekohe, the Prime Minister, 'vhile confining himself to finance. was unable, even with figures, to tell a to the electors. He claimed his Government had effected economies of two and a.half million?. but had to admit last year’s expenditure went up a million and a.quarter. He alluded to surpluses, but. did not explain why only two out. of twenty-ore millions sought were granted applicants tor State advances for housing and settlement. He claimed the war debt had been reduced since the war closed by as much as fifty millions, but he failed to explain why the National debt is to-day no less than it was then. The War Debt, ho said, was then S2 millions, whereas it remains to-day at seventy-six millions. Thon, as to the economies claimed, the P-;me Minister, in the same breath, admitted the wealthy classes have in the same period had theh z taxation cut down by three millions a year for a period of three years. Mr Coates did not quote the increases in customs taxation taken to make up for the reduction on big incomes and big estates. Incomes in I Australia are far more heavily taxed when above £5OO or £750 than in New Zealand. The twenty.scven millions ] spent, on soldier settlement cannot be ! regarded. as wholly interest bearing, ’ seeing that already the estates pur , chased at fancy prices had to be writlAen down by nearly three millions. Mr 1 Coates professed to think the freehold I tenure is typical of the country, but Iho knows well the freehold has been i largely swallowed up in mortgages, and for the plight of the farmers he had no remedy to offer whatever at Puko_ , kohe. His vaunted railway reforms ' are still confined mainly to paper, and Jho expenditure on fat salaries occasioned may fail to give cither greater efficiency or greater economy. The Prime Minister seems to have concludI cd that to talk big in the way cf ng’ 1 * res, must impress people, but the ejectors want to see results produced, not dh paper, but in reality. The truth is that we have little to show in the way of debt reduction, and lets in tne way of prosperity for all the money which the Government has splashed around for the benefit of those already very wealthy. If the Primo Minister means to bo judged by commercial standards alone, and to ignore social ills and needs, ho will find even then that hm administration xvill not stand the a. id.