CALLING A HALT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20259, 20 May 1929, Page 10

CALLING A HALT.

A marked change in the Prime Minister's views regarding unemployment is manifest in his reply to proposals by the Invercargill Borough Council that the Government should undertake certain works in the town, apparently estimated to cost £BO,OOO, and, evidently in addition, " give £20,000 to help Southland." No doubt the deputation anticipated a cordial reception of its programme, since for several weeks Sir Joseph Ward has been publicly rebuking the four chief cities for their delay in responding to his offer of £25,000 each and when he learned that Wellington had already accepted its share, persuaded the City Council to take £20,000 more. However, he seized the opportunity to call a halt, in effect censured the borough council for its importunity, and declaring that the Government did not have an unlimited ' purse, announced that it has now left only £7OOO of the money available for unemployment relief throughout the Dominion. The reference is no doubt to the Parliamentary authority for subsidising local expenditure by grants from the Consolidated Fund —which, in the past, have not been charged against current revenue, but paid out of the accumulated balance in that fund. In 1927, provision was made for subsidies not exceeding a total of £150,000; this was increased last year to £300,000 and again in the December session to £-100,000. Subsidies granted in 1927-28 amounted to £113,031 ; in the eight months from April 1 to November 24 last year, £60,890 were granted; making a total of £173,921, and leaving a balance of the then existing authority of £126,000. When Sir Joseph Ward asked for additional provision in December, he stated that there was still £125,000 available, so that from his present statement it appears that in five months the Government has granted subsidies to the extent of £218,000 as compared with £175,000 in the preceding period of nearly two years. At Invercargill, he protested against the "general demand" and said that a check must be applied lest the Government " find itself in the position of being a labour employing agency, beyond its means." Yet the difficulty is largely of its own creation, for it has offered unlimited employment at high wages, until local authorities have had to impose residential restrictions and the Prime Minister himself to complain that there were even people coming from Australia to swell the ranks of the " unemployed " in the Dominion.