BUDGET DEBATE

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 244, 12 September 1934, Page 9

BUDGET DEBATE

GOVERNMENT’S POLICY DEFENDED.

Views defending the Government's general policy and its assistance to the farming community in times of depression were expressed by Mr J. A. Nash, M.P., during the Budget debate in the House of Representatives. The member for Dunedin North (Mr J. W. Munro), said the member for Palmerston, had stated that the Government had done nothing for the dairy farmer. The Government had been attacked all over New Zealand as being a farmers’ Government and doing nothing but helping the farmers. But it was necessary that the farmer should be helped; for if he went to the wall, everybody else went with him. The Government were to be complimented and thanked for the very fine work they had done for the farming community. No doubt the Government would like to do more if it possibly could. Commenting on the restoration of salaries and its application to the nursing service the speaker said the nurses were a body of women deserving of every consideration, and everything possible should be done for them. “I understand,” added Mr Nash, “that in conformity with what is proposed in the Budget there will be a restoration of cuts in the salaries of our hospital staffs. The amount estimated as the Budget deficit was £2,000,000, and 1 think the Government and the Minister of Finance have done remarkably well to be able to bring in the results now shown. Would Mr Munro dispense with civil servants in order to reduce the expenditure sufficiently to bring in a balanced Budget?” . Dealing with the rate of exchange, Mr Nash said that it had been of benefit to the farmers. “It may bo true that the banks and the stock and station agents have benefited by_the raising of the exchange rate. Yvhy not? Many of those people have helped to keep the farmers afloat. They have found credit for them, and they have kept them going through a very pressing time. The member for Auckland East said that he had met no one who was rejoicing over the Budget, but that he had met plenty of people who had an intensifying dislike of the present Government. However, there is a feeling outside of goodwil 1 towards tho Government since its introduction. Every day we have in dications of the improvement that is taking place, and I think that justifies the Minister of Finance in his optimism. As to the Customs revenue, for the eight-monthly period ended July 31 last this increased by £550,000 over a similar period last year. In the Post Office Savings Bank for a similar period this year there is an excess of deposits over withdrawals of £500,000. The building permits _ issued disclose the activity in the building trade. Such permits issued this year exceed those issued last year to the tune of £1,415,000. As to radio licenses, we find that last year 94,530 were issued. Up to March 31 this year the number had reached 128,868. Many other cases could be quoted showing increases which point to an upward trend, and indicate that the time is not far distant when we shall be able to emerge from all of the difficulties we have experienced during the past few years. Although the increase in salaries is small, the action shows the intentions of the Government to carry out its promises. “With regard to the proposed re duction of 2'd in the £ unemployment wage tax, the reduction is not great, but it will be a relief to the burdened taxpayer. I am glad that provision has been made for the exemption of the young people under 20 years of age. That has been a great hardship because of the small salaries they receive. The raising of the annual exemption from unemployment tax in the case of women from £2O to £SO will be well received by those concerned. Many people find it hard to carry on with their slender resources. One matter for regret is the fact that the Government has not been able to restore the i 0 per cent, cut in old age pensions. Small as the proposed restoration is, there are many old-age pensioners who will be very grateful for it. I hope that the next year’s Budget will indicate a full restoration of the 10 per cent, cut made in 1931. We have a responsibility to those who did the pioneering work in this country —they suffered many privations —and now in their old age it is our duty to show them every possible consideration. SUPERANNUATION. “With regard to the Government’s proposals in connection with superannuation,” the speaker added, “I should say they will meet with the entire approval of the civil servants and the superannuitants. It is just two years ago since the committee was set up by Parliament to investigate this matter. The greatest fear, according to the evidence we received, was that the Government would not honour its contract with the superannuitants. Judging by the information in the Budget, it is quite clear that the superannuitants will receive all to which they are entitled. If the Government, under the different proposals mentioned, is prepared to take over the whole of the responsibility of the funds, there will be agreement irom all parties concerned. It has been difficult to understand why it has been necessary to have three boards to deal with the superannuation funds. One should have been quite competent. That is somewhat on the lines of wflat 1 strongly advocated when we had the matter under consideration. “Another cheerful statement in the Budget is that the number of unemployed has been reduced from 70,000 to 60,000. There is also the satisfactory statement that, while previously increases in numbers had taken place from March onward until the seasonal work was beginning to appear again, this year there has been no such increase. This in itself is certainly a sign of improvement. While at times it has not been possible to agree with what the Unemployment Board has done, I think it must be admitted by any fair-minded man that the board has had a very difficult task to perform, and that it has done the best possible with the money at its disposal. Now, with the reduction of the tax, it does not appear that the funds of the board will continue to increase. In any case, I am hoping that the Government, in regard to any balance that the board has available, will endeavour as far as possible to arrange for an increse in the amount paid to relief workers. The Budget indicates a turn in the tide and we can only hope that our great army of unemployed workers, already somewhat reduced, will be very much turther reduced by this time next year. “The sending of the men to camps has been hotly contested by many of the relief workers,” the member for Palmerston added. “In , some cases men have been required by the State Forest Department and the Public Works Department to report to camp, the order being given in a somewhat peremptory manner by the Unemployment Board. This lias been 1 a mistake. The men receiving the notices resented the mode of procedure and

were unwilling to leave their wives and families without knowing exactly what was expected of them, or what was going to happen. I have brought this matter before the Government previously and I trust that if more camps are required the departments will themselves advertise for the men, when I am sure a sufficient number will be forthcoming.” Referring to the dairy produce market, the speaker said: “We shall never be able to compete with tho Danish producers until we alter our method of marketing our butter in Britain. Some of our factories have already opened factories in London where'our butter is rechurned, made up, and sold in pats. As it is possible to send butter homo in halfpound or one-pound pats it will not be long before we shall become very strong competitors of the Danes. The company with which I am connected has been exporting in that way for some time, and we have had no difficulty in realising prices closely approximating those realised for Danish butter. If, however, we are to have a quota imposed on us, I think

we should look for other markets. The Government might look into the possibilities of trade with the East. We ought to send sample shipments and establish market contacts there. If we do that now and if the quota is imposed by Britain in 1935 we should have another market to look to for the balance of our products. The matter is of great importance, and if there is to he any loss at all • the Government should step in and see that the factories are protected while they are endeavouring to arrange new markets.” MORTGAGE CORPORATION. The proposed National Mortgage Coroporation would, Mr Nash felt sure, meet with general approval. “An impression has gone abroad among many people that this institution will take over the whole of the mortgages of New Zealand. The Budget does not say so, and I feel the Minister has no such thought in mind. The statement clearly leaves the ordinary mortgagee to carry on as in the past. What wo want is st#bilisation of interest, and I think this corporation will help to bring that about.”

The member for Palmerston said he would have liked to have seen a larger sum provided in the Budget for capital works. Of the amount mentioned (£3,560,000) £770,000 would be required for railways and hydro-elec-tric works. If, say, an additional £3,000,000 had been ...provided, it would have helped in a large measure to put a great many men into permanent work, and that was what was wanted at present. There would have been no difficulty in raising that amount, and they could have obtained it in New Zealand at a very low rate of interest.