ELECTION TACTICS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23082, 6 July 1938, Page 15

ELECTION TACTICS

PEOPLE NOT MISLED MR. HOLLAND'S ASSERTION DISTURBANCES AT MEETINGS [BY TELEGRAPn —SPECIAL REPORTER] WELLINGTON, Tuesday "It is clear that the tactics of Government candidates at the general election will be to cloud the issues before the people," said Mr. S. G. Holland (Opposition—Christehurch North) during the Address-in-Beply debate in the House of Bepresontatives to-night. "The issue is whether New Zealand is to be converted into a socialist State or to be allowed to develop bv the proved system of private enterprise." Mr. Holland said there had been an enormous change in political sentiment during the past 12 months, and there was not one member of the Government side of the House who was not concerned. The issues before the people were too clear for the Government's convenience. Attempts were being made, said Mr. Holland, to prevent National l'arty speakers from obtaining a hearing. Organised gangs of hooligans were trooping around to National Party meetings to create disturbances. It had been stated by several Ministers of the Crown that»the election campaign was going to be a dirty fight. Those statements had fallen from the lips of Ministers before the National candidates had commenced their campaign.

THE LAND FORCES CHALLENGE TO MINISTER CASE OF FOUR COLONELS CLEAR STATEMENT WANTED [BY TELEGRAPn —SPE.'IVL REPORTER] WELLINGTON, Tuesday A challenge to the Minister of Defence, the Hon. F. Jones, to repeat publicly a statement he made to the Labour conference last Easter to the effect that the land forces of New Zealand were adequate, was issued by Mr. H. S. S. Kyle (Opposition —Biocarton) during the Address-in-Beply debate in the House of Bepresentatives to-night. Mr. Kyle said that only recently the country had witnessed the spectacle of four colonels being "fired" from their positions in the military forces simply because they had been game enough to come out and issue a manifesto that did not agree with the policy of the Government. Mr. W. J. Poison (Opposition — Stratford): They soon learned about freedom. "The member for Grey Lynn wanted to know whether they were going to be courtmartialled," said Mr. Kyle. "During this debate we should have a clear cut statement from the Minister of Defence setting out the attitude of the Government toward these four officers of the territorial forces. Everyone knows that our land forces at present are inadequate."