AUSTRALIAN BANKS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23330, 23 October 1937, Page 24

AUSTRALIAN BANKS

OPERATIONS IN THE DOMINION LABOUR MEMBER'S CRITICISM (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, Oct. 22. The Australian trading banks operating in New Zealand were criticised by Mr H. M. Christie (Govt., Waipawa) during the Financial Debate in the House of Representatives to-day. These* banks, he said, had operated solely in their own interests and he did not wish to see New Zealand dominated by them as had occurred in the past. " During the depression," Mr Christie said, "the Australian banks operating in New Zealand used the profits they made here to expand credits in Australia. I hope to see the day when the banks in New Zealand are giving real service to our own country. In the past these banks have used New Zealand to suit themselves. We should not have this country dominated by people whose head offices are outside the Dominion, and only when a Government has the courage to tackle this problem will we be in a reasonable position." , ~ . , Mr Christie claimed that business people generally were in a much better position as a result of the Government's policy. Many people, he said, seemed to assume that money collected in taxation went out of existence. That was not so, although he was quite prepared to admit that the payment of taxation was irritating at the time. The money collected went into circulation again and, in fact, circulated faster than before, so much so that it improved the position of every business man in New Zealand. Business men had no bad debts to-day and were able to collect payment in cash for the goods they supplied. A man writing bad debts to-day should not be in business. . People dealing with theif arming community, Mr Christie added, admitted that their sales had increased enormously, and that they were having no difficulty in obtaining payment.