SPEECH BY ME. BURBUSH

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18244, 10 November 1922, Page 10

SPEECH BY ME. BURBUSH

FUTURE OF ÜBEBALIBM. FINANCE AND SETTLEMENT. The Liberal candidate for the Waitemata seat, Mr. F. Burbush,' opened his campaign last evening, when he delivered an address to the electors at the parish hall, Devohport. The Mayor of Deyonport, Mr. H. S'W. King, presided. v , Tliq Leader of .the Liberal Party, Mr. T. M. Wilford, was present at the opening of > the meeting, and announced that Mr. Burbush was the official candidate of the party. Ho had known the candidate for 17 years as a general adherent of the Liberal'and labour cafuso, and considered him thoroughly worthy of the confidence of the electors of Waitemata. "Back to Seddon" was to be the watchword of the' party at the election campaign. He had visited most of the electorates of the Dominion recently, and believed that great changes in the political world were pending. / The candidate said he had been a staunch Liberal for 26 years, and had been associated with tha moderate Labour movement, but had no time for those extremists who were advocating revolution against our Constitution. That, was a spirit that should be'resisted. Aa to the Reform Party's endeavour to corner the market in loyalty, he would refer his hearers to Mr. Massey's famous speech at Foxton, in which ho asked the electors of the Dominion to send men to the House who had; been loyal to their country. The speaker said- that as far as Waitemata was concerned, that meant that Mr. Massey had invited the electors to vote for the Liberal candidate. Of the three candidates for the, seat, his loyalty had been proved by deeds, not words. The arrogant assumption that the Reform Farty, in claiming loyalty as its own special virtue, was made ridiculous by an examination of the politics of the men who went to the front. •- Taking the voting figures at the last' election as.a basis, 62,000 of.these men were Liberal and Labour, and only 38,000 Reform. ■ Past Liber*! Legislation.

Notwithstanding all that bad been said by its opponents, the Liberal Party was coming into its own again. People did not require to have good memories to recall the days when the party led by Mr. Massey bitterly opposed the progressive legislation of Mr. Ballance and Mr. Seddon. Every measure designed to benefit the workers and the great middle class was subjected to- strenuous opposition, and yet so beneficial did this legislation prove that Mr. Massey and his Tory supporters did not dare to repeal it. An insidious influence, however, was being exerted, and if Liberal law was not placed under true Liberal administration the evil influences .of Toryism would again prevail. ' . "' . The need for reconstruction in view of present-day conditions was strongly emphasised by the speaker. Taking a wide view of the situation, and with some thought for the future, he said the sins of omission and commission of the Massey Government were well known. Ho did not propose to dwell on them; bo preferred constructive politics. When the affairs of a large sbusiness got into a mess the usual thing, after ihe staff had failed to clear up matters, was to call in outside expert advice. It wOuld be' impossible to place the Dominion in, a sound financial position in a week or two, but we could start properly by having an independent stocktaking. A committee of independent financial experts, he contended, should, be asked to investigate and rtiport oji the country's finances. There was urgent necessity for an immediate reduction or more equitable dis> tribution of taxation. Mr. Burbush advocated the establishment of a State bank and a State note issue as a means toward easing ihe financial burden of the country,. ; ', Land and Unemployment. The speaker emphasised tile necessity for a vigorous land-settlpm«nt policy. The opportunity should be taken to settle an area of unimproved land under the overseas land settlement scheme, for which financial assistance would be provided by the 'imperial Government. A matter generally lost sight of in this connection was that every new settler not only increased the Dominion output, but also reduced the national debt per capita, It was possible to prevent unemployment, declared Mr. Burbush. The experience of the Repatriation" Department had taught that lesson. It was possible for the State to .provide remunerative work for those who through no fault of their own became unemployed. The speaker critioised the Government in regard., to pensions. He said the method of' assessment of soldiers' pensions was arbitrary, Each case should be dealt with according to the man's occupation "and rapacity to Work. The Government,, he declared, had retrenched at the expense of the soldier and the old -age pensioner. The rate of pensions, and exemptions had not risen in accordance, with as cost oi! living. Ten years ago an exemption of £3<f a year was allowed on income; to-day the exemption was only £5 more. The exemption, on> property had only been raised" from £340 to £390, notwithstanding the enormous inflation m valued,and the reduced exchange value of money. , Railway Administration Drastic reorganisation of the whole railway system was neceiisary, with a reduction of fares and freights to popularise the" service and increase the revenue. Ho advocated the establishment of a board! to advise on railway matters, consisting of representatives of the Government, the department, the public, and the employees. Not only were the railways not paying, but the service was teething with ! discontent. * Other matters dealt with by the speaker included electoral reform, the need for the revaluation of'some of the properties purchased for soldier settlement, and the easing of repayments on soldiers' houses, the titandardisation of cheap school books, and various' local matters. Mr.- Burbush said it was of the greatest importance that they watch the proceedings of the Main Higbfways Board. Devongirt was the "gateway of the North." e spoke of the injustice of the telephone toll, and also stated that he was against any scheme that would endanger the life or limb of North Shore residents. He was not in'favour--of the waterfront railway. A number of questions were answered by the candidate, who was accorded a vote of thanks and confidence by a large majority. '

MB. PFRTELI'S MEETING. * , SEDATE AND DECOROUS. A more sedate and decorous meeting than that which assembled in the Methodist (School-room, Gordon Road, Mount Eden, to hear the views of: Mr. J. Pur tell, the selected Labour candidate for Roskill. it would be difficult to imagine. The attendance was good, and many women were present. The candidate had no interruptions to contend with, and but few questions were asked. Mr. Purtell said they would find that the Labour Party stood for majority rule, with the application of the natural. resources of the Dominion for human benefit and not for profit Within, the ranks of that party they had, he believed, some of the cleverest and best scholars: LIBERAL FOR TATJRAHCJA. CANDIDATE ANNOUNCED. [BY XEIEGJUPH.—-OWN COEEESPONDSKT.] TAXJRAJSGA?> Thursday. It is reported on good authority here that Mr. Laurence Johnston, of Auckland, will oontest the Tauranga seat against Sir William Hemes, standing as the official Liberal' oandidaie.