LABOUR'S OBJECTIVES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22738, 26 November 1935, Page 15

LABOUR'S OBJECTIVES

ADDRESS BY MR P. NEILSON An outline of. the objectives which Labour lias before it was given by the party's condidatc for the Dunedhi Central seat (Mr P. Neilson) at a well-attended meeting at the Mangold Salon,. Musselburgh rise, last night. Mr F. Gibbon presided. Opening his address, Mr Aeilson declared that New Zealand had reached the parting of the ways. Judging by the opposition which the Labour Party s policy had aroused, not only in Dunedin but throughout the Dominion, those who disagreed with Labour aleo realised that this stage had been reached. " They have had a very fair innings," the candidate stated, "and they realise that if they lose control of the Treasury benches they might find it hard to get back there again. A movement can be judged more by the opposition which it creates than by the programme which it places before you." There were three parties before the electors, Mr Neilson continued, and if the Nationalists got into power they would remain there for four years. He did not know what the Democrat Party proposed to do, but he did know that if a Labour Government were elected it would remain in power for only three vears.-—(Applause.) He thought that the electors had had sufficient experience during the four years under the present administration to give them an indication that the condition of the country was not what it could and ought to be and also that the country was not on the high road to prosperity as the supporters ot the present Government would lead the electors to believe. There were in New Zealand to-dav, notwithstanding the cry of coming prosperity, 58,000 registered unemployed. That meant that there were still p'ractically 250,000 people dependent on relief pay or sustenance, and in addition many men who were in employment, were not working full time. On the statement of the Minister of Employment 50 per cent, of the working"' population was receiving less than £3 per week. If that was prosperity, then the ideas of the Labour Party and the Government as to what constituted prosperity were as the poles asunder. Mr Neilson went on to quote cases or distress, and stated that the position of these people was not due to any shortage of goods. New Zealand could produceenough to enable tlie people to live in comparative affluence, but instead misery and degradation ruled. The present conditions were due to a lack of purchasing power. There was something wrong with the existing state of society, for it was impossible to build a virile nation when people had to put up with the standard of existence endured in the cases to which he had referred. The Government had said that it could not get men to go into camps, but he could quote cases in which men had been able to earn an average of only 2d hn hour under the camp system."' Labour said that those men should.be given standard rates of pay, so that they would be able to provide for themselves as well as for their wives and families. Mr W. Downie Stewart had said that it might be possible to get men to go into camps- now that the Government proposed to pay married men 12s a day and single men 9s. I hat very statement justified the Labour policy ot paying standard rates. ■: Mr Neilson went on to refer to the salaries paid to the members of boards stating that while the average salary o. 80 members of Parliament was £459, -'!) members of boards were paid an average of £llOO. When one remembered that men in camps were earning only 2d an hour he thought it would be agreed that the board members were getting rather more than they were entitled to. Out of the 470.500 male adults in New Zealand 339.800. 0r72 per cent., were earning so little that they were not required to furnish income tax return* On the other hand 11 per cent, of the. male population absorbed nearly 30 per cent, of the total assessable income, this was where Labour would levy its income tax—from those on the highest rung ot the ladder. The Government.had raised its funds by taxes which bore on the lowest incomes. . Some people said that the problem that was being faced to-day was one ot over-production, but there could not oe over-production so long as women and children were not receiving the necessities of life If people received more purchasing power, however, there would be more employment and a better standard of lite. Labour said that it was inhuman and unjust to restrict or destroy production while people were in want. It would oe the duty of Labour to find out what was wrong and rectify the mistake. It had found that so far as this country was concerned there was nothing wrong with the method of production. Labour was prepared to step in and see that the peop e got sufficient of that production to enable them to live in comfort and decency. it there is anything wrong or un-Ohnstian about that I would like someone to point it out to me," he added amidst applause. This first step in bringing this about, he continued, would be to get control ot the currency and credit of the nation. The new Prime Minister of Canada (ivlr Mackenzie King) had gone to the country on this very issue and had wop on it. In Tasmania a monetary committee set up by the Government had also reached the conclusion that this was necessary. The Commonwealth of Australia had shown what could be done with a people s bank. This institution had been created in 1913 with £IO,OOO of capital. In the last half of 1934 it had shown a profit of £783,894, and in 23 years it had made profits of over £30,000,000. All of this had gone into what was called-in New Zealand the Consolidated l'und. What could be done in Australia could be done in New Zealand —(Applause. Mr Neilson declared that the policy of the Labour Partv with respect to banking was supported by five Government members ot the Monetary Committee, and he also quoted Mr Seddon as stating that a policy such as Labour proposed to carry out was necessary. The candidate added that it. was necessary to take more people from the labour market at an earlier sta<*e and to allow others to take thenplace, thus giving the older people more leisure than they enjoyed at present. Why were the banks spending so much money in an endeavour to demonstrate the advantages of a private banking monopoly.'' He thought that the answer was that they saw the writing on the wall. Referring to the closing of the Savings Bank in New South Wales, Mr Neilson quoted a former Labour member of Parliament as declaring that the situation had been brought about by fake advertisements. Labour, on the other hand, had not made political capital out of the closing of the Primary Producers' Bank with a loss ol £1,000.000. The candidate concluded with a detailed explanation of Labour's credit proposals. . At the conclusion of his address air Neilson was accorded a vote of thanks and confidence. (Extended report by arrangement.)