SIR JOSEPH WARD REPLIES

New Zealand Times, Volume XL, Issue 9173, 13 October 1915, Page 10

SIR JOSEPH WARD REPLIES

A VIGOROUS SPEECH.

The Minister for Finance (Eight Hon. Sir Joseph Ward) said that he wanted to refer to some statements that bad been made in the course of the debate during the afternoon. The member for Lyttelton in particular had placed most unfair suggestions before the House in referring to the Arbitration Amendment Bill, which had dealt with the case of a condensed milk factory in Southland. He had talked as though he alone was the guardian of the interests of Labour in the House. As a matter of fact the member himself had not been in the House at any (ima

when New Zealand’s labour and factory legislation was being passed, while the speaker had supported every one of the bills over a very long period of years. The bill which had dealt with the case of the condensed milk factories had been drafted by the Labour Department, and had come from tho Government- It had proposed simply that a condensed milk factory should be placed on, tho same footing as dairies and jam factories. The members who had talked as though they were going to die defending the interests of Labour had asked why extra hands were not engaged- As a matter of fact, the factor was situated out in the country, it dealt with the perishable produce of the small farms, and tho extra labour could not be provided. The township would not provide it. What, after all, had been proposed ? Simply that a condensed milk factory should be placed in tho same position as a jam factory, a ifcllmongery, a fish-curing establishment, or a dairy, under the Labour laws of tho country. The factory was required to work on Saturday afternoons in order that a perishable product might not be thrown away. Yet certain members, without pausing to inquire or to learn the facts, had rushed into the fray, held up the bill—and succeeded simply in blocking the next bill on tho order-paper, dealing with victimisation on the waterfront. The members who had done this foolish thing were not entitled to claim that they were the only representatives of Labour in the House. He hoped to sea the bill brought forward again in tho following session and put through, by the members who had blunderedMr Webb (Grey): "We will stonewall it again if it provides_ long hours for women and girls.” Sir Joseph Ward: "If you do, in face of the, facts, you will be showing poor judgment, and good judgment is the first requisite of a successful politician. The bill was needed to meet special conditions in a perfectly fair way, without doing injustice to. anybody or oppressing anybodyTHE MEAT SUPPLY.

Turning, to the question of meat supply, Sir Joseph Ward , said that, a Labour member had told the House about five butchers who had been forced out of business in Wellington- If that had happened in the face of the high retail prices and the “war profits," what would occur if he accepted the advice of some members and took all -war profits by taxation? Would- everybody have to “go broke"?, The. fact w.-is that he was taking a million, of money in extra taxation from the people who ordinarily drew war profits, and that was .being done' without waiting to see just, what the profits were. He asked, members to suspend judgment regarding the Board ■ of Trade until the appointments had been made and the work begun. . ■ THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT“The National Government was .brought into existence-in a time of national emergency of an-unprecedented kind," added Sir Joseph -Ward- The Government necessarily has = had- very difficult work to face during the war period. An odd clause may have crept into a bill that gave a chance of party conflict or of a cry of contentious legislation. But look in the broadest possible way at -the general position iA the Dominion' since the formation of the National Government. The general position has been one of strong confidence throughout New Zealand; war troubles are being met and dealt with ail round by the members of the Ministry in the direction of keeping, the country strong, of helping ,to get me« 'who are ready to be trained to fightthe battles of the Empire. This is not the time for fault-finding. It is a time for the co-operation of every section of the 'community. It is not a- time for raising personal matters, or for allowing the personal or party aspirations of any of us to carry us off our feet.. The steady and united assistance of every part of the Empire is. required to ensure that the victory which must pome shall be gained as , soon as possible. When the stupendous conflict is over, then it will he time enough for ue to go hack to the personal matters andi considerations that we have laid aside and to resume the. discussion of the comparatively minor issues that engago our attention in ordinary ? times. Al* though the National Government has to face criticism, and although it cannot have behind it the great effective force of a solid party, it does stand here as representing the sentiment' of the community- Members of this House will find when they go before the people that the men and women of the Dominion will not let them raise the ordinary party issues during the period of the war- 1 If the National Government succeeds in carrying ..New Zealand past the difficulties arising from the war, keeping the Dominion strong, and the necessary avenues open for the workers, the traders and the settlers, X believe' that the critics of the future will say that, irrespective of the individual opinions of any member or the Administration, it came .at the right time in the_ best interests of- the Empire and of New Zealand. 1 The bill was read a third time at 9.15 p.m. and passe.d.