Address-in-reply Debate

Manawatu Times, Volume 63, Issue 153, 1 July 1938, Page 7

Address-in-reply Debate

Social Security Defended DR. MCMILLAN’S SPEECH Per Press Association. WELLINGTON, Last Night. ! Both the floor of the House and the galleries were filled for the commence- | ment of the Address-in-Rcply debate j when the House resumed at 7.30 tonight. Moving that a respectful address be presented to the Governor-General, Dr. McMillan, who was greeted with applause, asked tho leader of the Opposition to confirm or deny the rumour that if his party returned to oftiec they intended to extend the life of the next Parliament as had been done by the past Opposition. Government. Dealing with the Government’s proposed social insurance and superdnnuntion schemes, he stated: “We do not know the exuct form of the Government’s proposals. But we can safely assume that they will approximate to the proposals that were outlined by the Prime Minister to the Select Committee. The Government is offering an insurance policy to the people that far transcends anything that has been available before.” lie added that there could be no freedom where there was not economic security and the Government believed in true •f rAftdorh.

Speaking of the benefits of the scheme, he stated that tho average amount spent by New Zealand people in health services at the present was approximately 4 per cent, of their income or 9d in tho pound. Of course, all did not spend that amount. However, if each person’s medical expenses were average expenses, then there would be-little hardship. It was tho few people who became ill who had to shoulder all the cost in a group of a million people. Statistics showed that 470,000 people will suffer no recent illness, 320,000 will be sick once a year, 140,000 will be sick twice, 50,000 will be sick three times and 20,000 will be sick four times. Dr. AlcAlillan added that as New Zealanders spent upwards of £7,000,000 a year on various health services, it could be seen that the problem was not to find more money but to find newer and more efficient ways of spending that money. 111-organised, uncontrolled and spasmodic guerilla warfare against disease could no longer meet the needs of modern health maintenance, and it was abundantly clear that a health insurance scheme was long overdue in New Zealand. Of the Government’s proposals in connection with tho health scheme as outlined recently, he said he considered the universal general practitioner service principle tho most important single lactor. If wc were to obtain a service natural to our New Zealand national outlook and democratic ideals, this service would be characterised by the right of every qualified medicul practitioner to participate in the scheme, afford facilities to medical practitioners serving in the scheme to participate in the local administration of it, freedom of choice as between doctor and patient and as little interposition as possible betwen doctor and patient, and those who rendered service would be adequately remunerated. The Government, said Dr. McMillan, did not propose to provide thq full benefit of the superannuation and health schemes to all upon the opening day of the schemes. To do so would be much too disturbing to the private arrangements of people. At the very most 3d out of the shilling was lor the superannuation benefits. To have started off with the full scheme would have meant Is 3d instead of threepence and that ivould have placed a heavy burden on those who already were making provision for themselves. “We shall progress gradually,” said Dr. AlcAlillan, giving the people lime to adapt themselves to tho new and improved conditions. But we have gone much further than most people imagine. Owing to the misrepresentation of the Press and of our opponents very few people realise just who is entitled to draw the full 30s a week. In determining an applicant’s possessions for pensions purposes no account is taken of the possession of land or of a home. You can own your own home and still draw the full pension. It does not matter what your home is worth—even if it is worth £20,000 you can still own it and draw the full pension. Each pensioner can have £SOO of savings in cash and still draw the full 30s a week. That is, an elderly couple can have £IOOO in cash and draw the full 30s a week each. They can also earn or have a private income of £1 a week and still draw the full 30s a week each. Of course, the interest from their £IOOO is taken into account in determining their income.” Dr. AlcMillan also stressed tho fact that old couples earning or having au income of £2 a week would get an additional £2 a wees from the Government, and if their incomes aggregated £3 a week they drew £1 a week from tho Government. The scheme meant a guaranteed minimum income of £3 a week to those who had nothing and £1 a week to those who had £1 a week or more. The Government would also make up the incomes to £4 a week of those who were in other superannuation schemes and whose income was less than that sum. At the conclusion of his speech Dr. AlcAlillan was accorded a round of hearty applause. Seconding the niotioD, Air. B. Roberts, who was greeted with applause, stated that tho administration of the present Government had done more to promote real loyalty to the Empire and constitutional democracy than anything else during the present generation. The Opposition, ho said, had not divulged much of its policy to date, but had declared itself to bo in favour of private rather than State enterprise. However, wc were living in very complex times and the good of State had to come before that of the individual. When a young couple married and settled down, he said, they received their first lesson in Socialism. They had to learn to live for the benefit of both instead of to live solely for the individual, unless, of course, he added, they wished to end up in tho