“DONE ITS BEST”

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8611, 23 December 1913, Page 4

“DONE ITS BEST”

Wo notice that one of the minor Tory organs expresses the opinion that ‘ -'whatever may be said to the contrary, the Massey Government has done its best to carry out its pledges.” The Hon. W. F. Massey said something like that towards the close of the session. but we have certainly been unable to discover reliable corroborating evidence. If the Tory Government has “ done its beet,” wo are afraid that a. candid confession of incompetence is due to the country. It would, in our view, bo difficult to find in any country a Government that has broken so many promises in such a short time as tho Massey Government of boasted “Reform” has done. Wo challenge anybody to point to a Ministry with such a painful record in this respect, or to one that has dug such a yawning chasm between its promises and its performances. Tho Government has substantially increased the taxation that it undertook to reduce. In 1911 Mr Massey, then desperately anxious to catch votes, told tho people that they were shamefully over-taxed by the Liberals, who ho said had borrowed and squandered recklessly, and controlled the public expenditure in party interests instead of to promote the national welfare. A definite pledge to bring about a lower rate of taxation than then existed was placed in the forefront of the pre-elec-tion platform of self-styled “ Reform.” Yet the Year-book proves that in the last financial year, with the Tories in office, the taxation was actually 10s 3d per head of population higher than in 1911—the burden upon tho workers and producers was 10s 3d per head more than the amount that Mr Massey declared to bo excessive and promised to reduce 1 The Tories promised to reduce borrowing, but they have raised every pound that they could get from every source at home ond abroad. They declared that £1,500,000 a year was far too much to borrow for public works, hut their own record in this particular line of loans is £3,500,000 in two years, or at least £500,000 more than they said was too much and promised to reduce. Tho Tories complained of the loan flotation charges paid by the AVard Government, and have continued to pay the same expenses, if not more. They railed at the cost of Liberal loans in interest, but have themselves become responsible for the dearest borrowing transaction in New Zealand’s history for a quarter of a century, and have saddled the present and future generations with a load that they must corry for anything from thirty to fifty years. The Tories complained of the amount of money spent m public buildings, and are spending more than ever. They certainly grumbled unceasingly about the land tax, and they profess to have increased it substantially. They undertook to pass a Local Government Act which should do away with the existing system of allocating money for roads and bridges, but now they find that the old system that they so roundly condemned is quite good enough for their purposes. They promised to promote town planning, but have done nothing. They pledged themselves to find land for the people, and last week offered seven sections to a hundred and fifty land-seekers. They complained of the excessive death duties, and they have collected a record sum in such duties and boast of the higher revenue so received. They even undertook to bring about industrial peace—but we hear very little about that promise nowadays.