MASTERS MAKES REPLY TO COATES

Manawatu Times, Volume LIII, Issue 6756, 8 November 1928, Page 7

MASTERS MAKES REPLY TO COATES

Inequitable Taxation How United Party Would Make Country Prosperous counter-blast to the Prime Minister’s recent campaign speeches was delivered at Stratford last evening by Mr. Robt. Masters, who is chairman of the United Party, and is again standing for 1 Stratford in its interests. The speaker offered little that was new either in his criticism of the Government or his elucidation of the proposals of his party.

Per Press Association. STRATFORD, Night. Mr. Robert Masters, chairman of the United Party, delivered an address here to-night in reply to a recent address by the Prime Minister. In regard to the proposal to borrow £70,000,000, he said an orgy of misrepresentation had taken place right throughout the Dominion on the part of both Ministers and candidates of the Reform party, together with the Press; first of all, in regard to the period in whioh it was going borrowed and loaned and secondly, as v to the soundness of the scheme.

Masters, to provide adequate medical expenses and such medical and surgical aid ,hoispital, and skilled treatment as might bo necessary to a worker who met with misfortune while at his work. Employers in New Zealand were paying sufficient in premiums xM meet such demands, but the worker! were not receiving the proportion do! to them. In the main, too great a proportion was used in commissions, wages, salaries, overhead' expenses and dividends, The United Party would give relief to the worker in this connection at the earliest possible moment The speaker dealt at some length with the appointment of Mr Sterling as general manager of Railways. Ho had no quarrel whatever with the appointment nor with the salary, believing, as he did, that Mr Sterling was a thoroughly capable man. He believed and hoped ■ that Mr Sterling wouldmake good in the job. However, he had a very distinct and definite objection to the arrangement made by the Premier in providing a superannuation of £2300 a year, . which, in his opinion, was far from being justified, in view of the heavy demands on the fund. Superannuation Fund Rocky.

Tho criticism levelled at Sir Josept Ward’s proposals was merely the criticism levelled by the same party when the State Advances office was first instituted, when it was termed by the Reform party a “State pawnshop." There could be no doubt that the pressing need of the farming community to-day was assured finance at tho lowest possible rate of interest. The short-dated mortgage at a high rate was his continual dread. The EB- - party had failed to meet th? needs of the country in this respect and it would appear from a statement made by the Minister of Finance in th« House on July 18th, that the primary producers had nothing to hope for until such time as the Public Works and other constructions were completed. Money for all but Farmers.

During the past four years, the Government had paid in £308,000 to stabilise the fund and an actuarial valuation of the Public Service superannuation fund showed that it was now necessary to make a subsidy of £4OO, t 000 to ensure, its stability. Unless <■ more prudent business-like attention was given to it, the time was not fat distant when the people of New Zealand would rise up and protest against the huge sums having to be paid out of the Consolidated Fund, which, aftcS. all, was the taxation of the people, towards providing extravagant pension! for highly-paid officers. Mr Masters expressed approval of the • business-like manner in which Sir Joseph Ward proposed to construct the main lines of the Dominion and also his definite statement in regard to putting an end to the construction of anf branch lines in any part of the Dominion. c Railway Branch Lines. In spite of the fact that £445,000 had had to be paid out of the Consolidated Fund to make up the loss on branch lines in 1926-27, and £489,000 in 1927-28, the Government continued with the construction of branch lines and the authorisation of additional ones. , .. In dealing with the slogan “more business in Government, and less government in business,” Mr Masters said the principle of the Parliamentary control of expenditure by means ot annual appropriations was being seriously weakened and according to the report of tho Auditor-General, the amount of expenditure for the year ending March, 1928, not subject to annual appropriation exceeded £31,000, 000, out Of a gross total of £07,000,000 while of this amount, £11,000,000 was expended without any amount having been submitted to Parliament by th« departments in their estimates. liament, said Mr Masters, was fast losing control of its public expenditure and the Ministers, being weak. wcr« being controlled by the heads of their departments. The Real Tragedy. The real .tragedy of tho present position was that in a primary producing country like New Zealand, tho Government had failed to do anything in the nature of land settlement. While Reform boasted of its achievements during the past three years, no mention was made by tho party itself of anv one thing having been done m regard to land settlement. This was a blot on the administration of a primary producing country, dependent for its Wealth on the products of the land. It was regrettable that while the population had increased in the past fi'O years by 129,000, there were in excess of 13*,000 fewer people on the land. It would bo the policy of the _ United Party to undertake a progressive land settlement policy, with a view to acquiring estates by voluntary methods if possible, and this failing, the compulsory provisions now on the Statute Book would be amended, made more effective, and applied. Cost of Administration.

In replying to a question asked by the member for Palmerston, urging the provision of more money for- settlors and workers, Mr Stewart had stated that his trouble was that there was such a tremendous programme ol Public Works in progress, with railway workshops, irrigation works, hydro-electric schemes, and railway improvement schemes, that his effort* were strained to tho utmost to cope with this expenditure. Included in the next programme of works, said Mt Stewart, were large railway workshop! in the four principal centres.' Fol hydro-electric schemes, he said, it seemed to be constantly necessary to make large sums available and in conclusion, he said, in view of all these works, it was very difficult to find all the money members required to be placed in State Advances offices for farmers. "it was quite apparent, said Mr Masters, that the farming community had nothing to hope for in the next few years, from the Reform Government in this direction and their salvation rested on the policy laid down by Sir Joseph Ward, to provide, if required, at least £60,000,000 for the specific purpose of providing assured finance at reasonable rates for the definite period of thirtytwo and a-half years. State Advances Starved.

Out of the £8,000,000 odd borrowed by the Government during the past year, only £890,000 had been set aside for the State Advances office and this included the sum to start the Eural Advances branch. The amount loaned to settlers in 1928 was over £3,000,000 less than in 1927. The amount loaned to workers was approximately £1,000,000 If the present apathy in regard to this great question was allowed to continue, then instead of settlers having to wait, as at present, over two years to get their applications dealt with, it would appear that they would have to wait for a very indefinite period in future. Mr Masters alleged that the plank of the Reform platform at the last election, to place taxation on those best able to bear it, had not been honoured. While income tax had been reduced by nearly £3,000,000 during the last ten'years, Customs taxation had been increased by an equal amount. Those best able to bear the taxation were being freed, while those less able to bear it had an increased burden placed on them. Squatters Scot Tree. Mr Stewart, in his Budget speech, had said, in referring to direct taxation, that income tax on the individual in New Zealand was the lowest in the world, yet a distinct and definite pro raise was made at the last election that taxation would be placed on those most able to bear it. Wealthy squatters who were friends and supporters of Reform, having net incomes of anything from £70,000 to £IOO,OOO per annum, were absolutely immune from anything in the nature of income tax. While wo still had a war debt of £72,000,000, costing £350,000 in interest annually, these squatters, to protect whoso property the war was fought, were not contributing anything through income tax. If the United party were returned to power, these individuals would pay their fair and full share of the taxation of the country. One of the first considerations of the United Party would be an improvement in the conditions of the worker. Workers’ Compensation. Now Zealand formerly prided itself as being in the van of progress ix humanitarian legislation, but to-day she was behind almost every othet country of the world. It was the in- ■ tention of the United Party, said Mt

The Government had claimed that business principles were being applied in the Government departments, ami that economies ■were effected, but the cost of administration during the three years of the Coates' administration had increased from £23,570,000 to £24,944,000, which wont to show that the tendency was rather in the direction of extravagance. Mr Masters was accorded a rousing reception, being greeted with prolonged applause. His remarks were received with the greatest cordiality, applause being frequent. Mr Masters said Mr W. Poison wai pledged to support the United Party against the Government on a no-confi-dence motton. A motion of no-confidence in the Government was carried by the meeting.