HOODWINKING THE PEOPLE

Maoriland Worker, Volume 12, Issue 299, 22 November 1922, Page 5

HOODWINKING THE PEOPLE

fflassef s liew of Slate ; : , ; laiaSiiiig :

Spe*al-ing m : StratforS ea th® T_h at th% month, the Prime Minister soSt.

The -Government was a partner in

the Bank of "New Zealand and "was, ,drawlng from that institution, in .dividends and taxation, a total sum' of .nearly £600,000 a year. Tive Com-mdnwej-lth Bank, wii-ch was being quoted as an example, gave the Australian Government no revenue at all. If the opposition's idea waa" that the New Zealand Government should start a bank to compete with the Bank of New Zealand, he would reply, that it would amount merely* •to on attack upon the goose that was -laying the .golden eggs. Let us examine this inspiration of the Dominion's Finance Miaiister. If we have a State Bank, will the Banis of New Zealand cease to pay taxation? Obviously not. So the proposed attack on this fabulous goose is not going to terminate its egg-laying abilities. It may lay a few *gga! less in t a there is no reason Why some oi this bran, pollard, wheat, maize, etc., which now f pours into ltt» crop, should not be diverted to other geese and an equally useful career thereby opened up to them. - Mr. Massey forgot to .mention that the Commonwefalth Bank, by keeping down the interest rate on advances to six. per cent, right 'throughout the war period and after, had saved the citizens of Australia at least £15,000,000. So, if the goose isn't laying golden eggs for the Australian Treasury, the Australian public have no cause to regret the fact. OVERDRAFT PILLAGE

Had we had a State Bank in New Zealand during the last eight years holding -the rate of interest on overdrafts down hy only one per cent., the New Zealand ipeople. would have been saved nearly Mortgage rates would also hare been held in check (and instead of heing fleeced at every turn owing to tbe indifference or inability of the Massey Government, a measure of decency would have been retained in the business of usury. Ju6t think of it. The recorded .public and -private debt of New Zealand is 'to-day £490,000,000. Averaging the interest payable on "this at 8 per cent., we are paying £29,400,000 in interest alone. To lower the average rate of interest by one £>er cent, (and this could be done by introducing competition into the banking business per medium of the State Bank) would save the people of this country £~900,000 annually—Massey saved his rich friends, land aggregators and the octopus commercial institutions £1,000,000 hy cutting public servants' salar'es and wages. They, of course, will kei&p the spoils and yell for more of the same kind. They will get them too, If the electors give Massey license to make further by returning him to power—-but compare his way of reducing the load people have to carry with the Lahour Party's way of easing the burden on all the people. Massey may love the working man—he says s 0 and the Reform press regard him as a heaven-sent statement —but if he loves the working man. what are his feelings towards the moneylender?