Savings Plans To Finance Cash War

Northern Advocate, 15 November 1940, Page 7

Savings Plans To Finance Cash War

At a meeting of postmasters held at the Post Office, Whangarei, this week, the Auckland District Organiser for the National Savings Campaign (Mr C. J. Aicken) delivered an address on the more important points of the scheme. Mr Aicken stressed the need now, as never before, for the wherewithal for the prosecuting of this “cash” war. “There will be two distinct types of investor,” he said, “(1) the individual investor; and (2) the group investor. “The former will personally open an account at the Post Office, and he may at any time make a deposit on presentation of his pass-book at the Post Office.

“In regard to the group movement, although each member of a group will be treated as ari individual depositor, and will have a separate passbook and ledger account, the collection of his or her contributions will be undertaken by a collector employed in the business where the group is formed. “Britain’s Lead.”

“This scheme is not peculiar to New Zealand. It is part of a great Empire movement which had its origin in Great Britain, and will soon be universal throughout the Empire. “The people of the United Kingdom have given the nations of the British Empire an inspiring lead in national savings for war purposes, and the economic good of the whole community. “According to the latest figures the people of Great Britain have already saved and loaned to the Government for the prosecution of the war over £396,000,000. It is these savings groups that it is proposed to institute in New Zealand. On a population basis the membership of the Group Saving Movement in New Zealand should in the course of 12 months total over 300,000 persons, while the savings should amount to about £15,000,000.

“The Secretary to the Treasury has emphasised why we must all save more and spend less—firstly, because this war, more than any other, is a cash w.ar; and secondly, because after the war, we want to smooth out the depths of the inevitable depression.” The New Zealand National Savings Scheme affords a simple way of saving money.

There is no tax about it, you get your money back with interest. Distinct Features.

It has two distinct features, with special appeal to persons on medium and lower incomes. Any person may open a national savings investment account by investing 1/- or any multiple of 1/- at any one of the 1000 money-order offices throughout the Dominion.

Moneys lodged to the credit of .an investment account will bear interest at 3 per cent, per annum on each complete £l. “The people of Great Britain have shown and are showing how they can face up to a crisis, ,and their conduct should be an inspiration to New Zealanders, not only in the workshops and factories, not only in the offices and shops, but in every walk of life and in every class, i including the Public Service and the Government itself. “We must brace ourselves to greater individual and personal effort. A Job to Do. “The people of the Dominion have a job to do in the matter of national saving. All that is worth while in life and all that is worth living for is at stake. “May it be said of us that we fought a good fight and kept the faith —the faith of Democracy, the faith of freedom, and the faith of humanity and liberty. “The soldier sets us an example. He is risking his life for 7/- a day, and out of these meagre earnings he is leaving behind something to collect when the war is over. “Should we not follow his example? We all feel a debt of gratitude to him. “Let us put aside money to buy the goods that he will manufacture when he comes home at the end of the war. Do not let him come back to be unemployed because of our receiving him home empty-handed. “Mr Winston Churchill, in sending a War Weapons Week message to the citizens of Edinburgh, used the following inspiring statement, which applies also to the people of New Zealand:— “It is not given to all of us to serve in the .armed forces, but on each single citizen falls the duty of supporting those forces by his thrift and contributions to the utmost of his power.” Mr A. K. Bethell, of the Post Office staff, Whangarei, has been appointed local organiser of the National Savings movement in the Whangarei district.