TILTS BY PREMIER

Manawatu Standard, Volume LV, Issue 257, 27 September 1935, Page 8

TILTS BY PREMIER

AT OPPOSITION COMMENTS. STAUNCH DEFENCE OE POLICY. (By Telegraph—Special to Standard.) WELLINGTON, Sept. 26. In a speech with humorous tilts at the Opposition’s Budget criticism, the Prim© Minister (lit. Hon. G. V\. Forbes), in the House to-night, gave them credit for showing more cheerfulness—though, of course, saicl Mr Forbes, it was critical cheerfulness. Another Labour innovation lie asked the House to note was that, at last, they admitted there had been a depression. Hitherto it had been a case of blaming the Government for everything, ignoring what had happened outside New Zealand which had led to the national income of £150,000,000 in 1928-29 dropping in 1931-32 to £98,000,000. Mr Forbes recapitulated the measures which the Government had been forced to take to readjust national economy te this disastrous drop, and showed that "the depression fell with exceptional severity on New Zealand. National incomes from 1929 till 1932 fell in England by 15 per cent, Canada 46 per cent., the Commonwealth of Australia 23 per cent., South Africa 21 per cent., Denmark 14 per cent., and New Zealand 35 per cent. only exceeded by the United States, where the drop was 54 per cent. It showed the necessity of ’ doing something more drastic than other countries to assist the • primary producers, upon whom the brunt of the depression had fallen. - The Premier defended the wagereduction policy as a means of enabling employers, by reduced costs, to maintain more men in employment and concluded his survey of the Government’s measures with the confident declaration that the aim to get stability of finance had been achieved.' The charge was made that the Government had cut down wages but did not touch the wealthy, but the Government had cut down interest rates and effected the compulsory conversion of loans. The charge could not be sustained that the Government did not exercise its powers in the emergency fairly and equitably. LABOUR’S TWELVE POINTS. This solid policy which had been successful, Mr Forbes said, he wished to contrast with the Opposition Leader’s twelve points, . declaring : —“I don’t think any intelligent person is likely to accept these cloudy and vague promises and statements in substitution for the methods adopted by the Government right through the difficult times. We are told, of course, that the restoration of pensions and the Public Service salaries is being done to sweeten the electors, but wliat do the Labour Party do ? They are bidding higher each time we have a few additional points. (Laughter.) They recognise that we are able to point to the achievement in the Budget of the things we fought for.” The Prime Minister suggested that Labour’s twelve points would involve enormous inflation, and such a piogramme would land the country in a state of bankruptcy if carried out. He missed one old friend from the points—“socialisation of means of production, . distribution, and exchange.” “We have seen him for years,” concluded Mr Forbes sadly amid Government members’ laughter, “but they seem to have turned their backs oil him. He has been dropped for guaranteed prices.”