LABOUR'S PLANS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22517, 7 September 1936, Page 12

LABOUR'S PLANS

CHRISTIAN BASIS CLAIMS BY MR. OSBORNE IMPORTANCE OF BY-ELECTION Partly, no doubt, owing to the attraction of the presence of the Minister of Public Works, the Hon. R. Somple, the Labour candidate for Manukau. Mr. A. G. Osborne, had a very large attendance at his campaign meeting on Saturday evening. The meeting, which was hold in the Methodist Church Hall at Greenwood's corner, was presided over by Mr. C. W. B. Walker.

Mr. Osborne spoke for about an hour after the Minister, and was given a sympathetic and all but uninterrupted hearing. At the close a motion was carried on show of hands without opposition reaffirming continued confidence in Mr. Savage and the present Government and expressing determination to stand behind the organiser to ensure Mr. Osborne's return by a record majority.

Mr. Osborne expressed his sincere thanks to the Minister for having given his assistance in the campaign that evening. Labour, he said, declared that this Christian country should be governed by Christian principles; and ho invited them to test that claim by the legislation that had been carried out by the present Government. Every step it had taken had definitely been based on the Christian ethic. Conduct of Campaign Last Tuesday he had said he did not know who his opponet would be, continued Mr. Osborne, but now a Nationalist candidate had been chosen. He would carry on an intellectual fight with his opponent, and there would bo no personalities so far as he was concerned. He asked his supporters to give a fair and impartial hearing to any candidate that might come forward.

Mr. Osborne referred to the conditions when the Labour Government took office after four years of sorrow and unhappiness, which, they claimed, had largely been brought about by the maladministration of the CoatesForbes Government. He criticised the methods adopted by that Government in balancing the Budget, for instance, by reducing old-age pensions. If they had been in office now they would have reduced the.income tax instead of restoring pensions. A Test of Labour Policy In its desire to balance the Budget the former Government had robbed the widow and the mother of the soldier who did not come home. Could they afford to trust that party again? During this campaign thousands of pounds would be poured into the constituency by the opponents of Labour. The result of this election was being keenly watched not only throughout New Zealand, but in Britain; and a huge majority would indicate the heartiness of the endorsement of the policy of the new Labour Government by the people. The candidate criticised a number of measures of the past Government, such as the raising of the exchange rate and the imposition of the sales tax. and favourably reviewed the activities of the present Government, instancing particularly the readmission of five-year-olds to school, the reopening of teachers' training colleges and its assistance to the Workers' Educational Association. A number of questions were answered by the candidate to the satisfaction of the audience. His declaration thac he was pledged to the Labour Party and that if that party brought down legislation in any particular direction be would support it "right thiough the piece" was received with much applause.