Hon. Adam Hamilton Chides Prime Minister

Northern Advocate, 16 May 1939, Page 8

Hon. Adam Hamilton Chides Prime Minister

[Per Press Association. Copyright. ] INVERCARGILL, This Day.

“I if the Prime Minister got this load and the interest rate unanimously endorsed at the recent Labour Caucus,” said the Leader of

the Opposition, Mr. Hamilton, commenting last night on the Government’s internal borrowing proposals. “This is certainly an interesting turn of events for a Prime Minister who spoke so much about the use of the public’s credit and debt-free money, and said that further borrowing was L only debt in perpetuity. Has he also become an orthodox financier? “The terms and amounts of this loan will certainly cause some shocks. They will cause a shock first to those who supported the Government in the hope >' that such loans and interset. rates | would never again be necessary, cf “Secondly, the local bodies, who have been held down to 3J per cent., will now be bewildered, and those inH dustries, both primary and manufacturing, which need added capital to ■ ; V expand, will now find money harder H to obtain. “It would appear that the Govern- || ment is going to have its money needs ?V satisfied before it allows others to ijfw compete against it in the money market. i;,- “Perhaps much of this money nl- • ready has been spent, and part of the loan may be needed to repay tem- . porary advances. A long-term loan y would appear, after a hurried calcu- :■ lation, to give a return of about £4 8/pC.per cent., while the shorter term will about £4 4/- per cent. At the I 'present time, this would appear a

fairly attractive return to investors, if, indeed, free cash is available fcr investment.”