SHIPPING SERVICES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19844, 17 July 1926, Page 6

SHIPPING SERVICES

IGNORING THE SOUTH. SIR JOSEPH WARD COMPLAINS. (From Onn Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 16. When the House went into Committee early this afternoon on the general Estimates, Sir Joseph Ward brought up the question of more adequate shipping lacilu ties for the South Island. llicre wete votes for various shipping services on the Estimates, but every one of those services centred in the North Island. Not a single service that touched at the South Island conveying passengers and mails was subsidised by the country, which pain as a whole for the Hues that were subsidised. He intended to bring this matter up from time to time during the session, and next session, also, if he were alive and well, in Dunedin some of the most important people had spoken to him about the absolute want of consideration shown to that city. In Christchurch every businessman he had met complained in the same way. This ignoring of the requirements of the South Island should be fought by members of the South Island to bring it to an end. The Government, however, was sitting back and doing nothing. lie congratulated the Government on its large majoritv, but that was no reason why minorities in that House should not have the fullest attention given to their public requirements. It was not right tnat tliej should be ignored. Years and years ago, when he was a young man, bo could remember vessels coming to the South island ports laden with passengers and immiHon. Mr M'Leod: Did they receive subsidies? Sir Joseph Ward: The immigrants wr. immigrants in those days. Mr J. S. Dickson (jokingly): lucres only one port—Auckland. Sir Joseph Ward; The Aucklanders andthe Wellington people would not stand such treatment for 24 hours. Yet the despatch of immigrants could be done more economically by landing them at U ellington and radiating them by rail, ibo people of Canterbury and Otago have to dip their hands into their pockets to provide money for the whole of the immigrants of the country. The Hon. Mr Nosworthy (Minister of Immigration) said that the immigrants were landed at Wellington and Auckland, and sent to their destinations without any charge to them. The matter was one of policy, and would have to be considered by the Government. He would go into tiie matter with his colleagues and see whether the South Island business warranted the doing of anything along tbo lines suggested by the member for Invercargill.