Labour’s Policy Discussed During Budget Debate

Northern Advocate, 27 July 1938, Page 10

Labour’s Policy Discussed During Budget Debate

[Per Press Association. Copyright.'] WELLINGTON, This Day.

The debate on the Budget was continued during the sitting of the House of Representatives yesterday afternoon. The first speaker was Mr W. M. C. Denham (Government —Invercargill), who stated that the Budget was giving effect to Labour's policy of increasing the spending power of the people. He wanted to draw attention to the fact, he said, that the press of the Dominion had attacked the Government consistently since it came into office, and was a political weapon, but he added that he thought the press was a spent force as far as the House was concerned. It was crippled there because they had the microphone in the House. The Labour Government, he said, had completed nearly three years of the most prosperous period in the Dominion’s history, yet the press continued to cry the Government down.

Redistribution of Income

Redistribution of the nation’s income on a more equitable basis was the chief reason for the country’s prosperity. Mr Denham proceeded to deal with the achievements of the Labour administration during its term of office, and stated, in connection with public works, that Labour had done as much in three years as the Opposition had done in twenty years. Despite all that had been done, said Mr Denham, Labour had ended the year with a surplus of £BIO,OOO. If this had occurred under a Nationalist Government it would have been hailed as a wonderful achievement by the press of the Dominion from one end of the country to the other.

Interest Rates Kept Down,

Mr irennam continued that the Minister of Finance had produced a Budget eminently superior to the Budgets of the last Government. No additional sums had been raised in London, and a sum of £496,000 per annum was being saved to New Zealand by way of interest charges. The people could thank the Government for keeping interest rates low. He contended that if the previous Government had been in power, interest rates would have gone up at the demand of the financiers overseas, who would not lend their money unless interest rates were high. Mr Denham recounted what the Government had done for farmers, and stated that the farmer had been saved from the exploiter time after time since the last general election. Effect on Farmers. Mr T. H. McCombs (Government — Lyttelton) suggested that in view of the fact that the Opposition was very keen on getting the farmers’ votes back at the next election, the mystery of the proposed compensated price for dairy produce should be explained to them. He contended that under the compensated price scheme, as outlined by Colonel Closey, the farmers in the year before last would bo getting some lljd compared with 13d paid under the Government’s guaranteed price scheme.

Dealing with the question of marketing, Mr McCombs said that there was a surplus in the Dairy Industry Account of £113,000, and, in addition, the saving resulting from the new method of marketing had been £210,000, so that farmers were £IOO,OOO better off under the Government’s scheme than they would have been if they had marketed their produce under the old marketing procedure.

The Leaner of the Opposition, said Mr McCombs, had made a statement in the course of his Budget speech that the Budget had been balanced at the taxpayer’s expense. It was a silly statement, he said, because every Bud-

get was balanced at the taxpayer’s expense. Mr McCombs claimed that the only manner in which the Opposition could reduce costs was to -Reduce - ■ ' J*,.; jti. wages. **•;;* Defence. . . Dealing with defence matters^he said the ones who really wished tqrassist in the Dominion’s defence should help in securing recruits rather.' than merely criticising the Government’s policy. W** Mr J. B. F. Cotterill (Government— Wanganui) said that during the .Opperiod of office they ’.had "’had some rainy days, but the country was enjoying some sunshine -r today, and would continue to do so as &ng as the Labour Government remained in power. . ..■ i Mr W. J. Poison (Opposition—-Strat-ford): Oh no! We would be needing a mackintosh and umbrella. t Mr Cotterill: No, a “gamp” would do for you (Laughter). .' Continuing, Mr Cotterill said record income from exports certainly had an important- bearing on the Dominion’s present prosperity, but the Government could claim to have distributed incomes more equitably, with resulting increase in spending power generally. Cnarge Against Railway Board. , I Reierrlng to Mr Hargest’s recent allegation that railway accidents had increased since Labour had come into office, Mr Cotterill stated that the records of the department showed that derailments during the past thirteen years had averaged 30.2, and during the past two years the average had been 30. During the last year of the Railway Board’s control, there had been the largest number of main line accidents in the history of the department. There had been 42 passenger and 43 non-passenger train derailments, and twelve of the passenger derailments were due to defects in rolling stock. That was a record, and was double the average for the previous ten years. He was in the employ of the railways service at that time, he said, and he knew the policy of the board led to extension-of all overhaul periods. A rise in the number of defects of rolling stock had followed. The present Government had had to spend a lot of money to make up for deficiencies consequent on the Railway Board’s policy. The debate was interrupted by the adjournment at 5.30 o.m. (Continued on Page 8).