OVERSEAS DEBT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27241, 18 November 1949, Page 8

OVERSEAS DEBT

REDEMPTION BEFORE DUE DATE MR NASH’S EXPLANATION PA GISBORNE, Nov. 17. “ The National Party leader, Mr Holland, has charged the Government with paying off, a £20,000,000 debt in Britain before it was due.” said the Minister .of Finance, Mr Nash, in an address in Gisborne to-night. “He is quite right, but Mr Holland has not told all the story. He ha 3 not told you we borrowed the money'in New Zealand at a lower interest rate to redeem that loan and that we saved £300,000 a year in-interest. When the interest was paid overseas, New Zealand could not collect income tax from those who received it, whereas on interest paid in this country income tax could be lifted. So we save £300,000 or one-third of the interest we paid formerly, and we pay £600,000 a year to investors in this country from whom we take back about £300,000 in taxation,” said the Minister, amidst laughter. Surveying the results of Labour’s guaranteed prices and marketing policies, Mr Nash "aid the fact that the Government had £57,000,000 in hand in the stabilisation accounts was a guarantee that the farmers would not suffer a sudden disaster through market fluctuations. Industries were safeguarded against a fall of more than 7£ per cent, in the prices of meat and butterfat in any one year.

National Party speakers had claimed that “Mr Nash had spent money from the stabilisation accounts.” They were right; he had spent the money on helping to build hydro-electric schemes and schools and a lot o* other things of value. Insurance companies followed the same procedure in putting money to work in exactly the same way as the Government put the stabilisation funds to work. “ The money is there if and when you want it,” added Mr Nash.