DEMOCRAT PARTY

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXV, Issue 230, 14 September 1935, Page 7

DEMOCRAT PARTY

POLICY STATEMENT Announcement Next Month OPENING OF CAMPAIGN By Telegraph—Press Association ■ DUNEDIN, Sept. 13. An announcement that he would open his party’s campaign with a policy speech in one of the main centres early in October was made by the Democrat leader, Mr T. C, A. Hislop, on his arrival in Dunedin to-day in the course of a tour of the South Island. Mr Hislop stated that his party had made all necessary arrangements to fight the election campaign with the utmost efficiency. He preferred to withhold any comment of a comprehensive nature upon the policy of his party until the opening of its campaign, but he made it clear that if the Democrats were placed in power at the elections they would abolish both the gold tax and the sales tax. The Democrats could contest practically every seat in the country at the general election. Up t,o the present 68 candidates had been definitely selected for definite constituencies and choice of the remainder was on the point of completion. An official announcement of the names of all Democrat candidates would be made before the opening of the campaign next month. “Don’t make any mistake about tho fact that we are a very strong party,” Mr Hislop added. GOVERNMENT’S ADVISERS. “It is an open secret among those who know, ” Mr Hislop declared, “that the principal advisers of the present Government are three gentlemen outside Parliament who are convinced Socialists. The fruits of their advice are apparent and will become increasingly apparent if the Government is allowed to remain in office. It is clear to me that were the Democrat party not in the field a triumph for Socialism would be assured at the coming election. We give an opportunity to the great mass of people who do not believe in Socialism to stand by the basic principles of democracy and the right of the individual to develop himself and his affairs within the general control of the Government. We have a definite policy concerning all major problems Of the day. I have already outlined a considerable part and will deal with it in detail in my opening speech.” Mr Hislop stated that he would refer only to two matters covered by the policy of his party. One of them had come to his mind when he read a report of the statement made by Viscount Bledisloe referring to the possibilities of the development of gold-bearing areas of the South Island, if the Government could be persuaded to moderate the amount of taxation which it would impose in future years on the gold-mining industry REMOVAL OF GOLD DUTY. “With these remarks I fully agree,” Mr Hislop said. “It is with the object of stimulating the gold-producing industry of the Dominion that the Democrat party has as one of the important points of its policy the removal of the gold duty. This would give an impetus to the industry, with the consequent absorption of a very large number of unemployed, the opening up of avenues for profitable expenditure of capital and an increase in national income. I have examined this question carefully and I am satisfied that with proper assistance and encouragement to the gold-mining industry we can achieve a great deal towards national recovery. The heavy export duty on gold is just one other result of the Government’s plunge into an artificial exchange policy. They put this duty on to help to meet some of the costs of their exchange policy, but they did not hesitate to confiscate the people’s gold that was lying in the banks at the time they took over the banks’ gold reserves for the Reserve Bank. ’ ’ The Democrats proposed also to remove the sales tax, which was another burdensome result of the original exchange blunder.