STANDARD OF LIVING

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27387, 12 May 1950, Page 6

STANDARD OF LIVING

Sir, —As a listener to the address given by Dr H. R. Hulme on Monday at the graduation ceremony of the University of Otago, I was surprised to hear the learned gentleman solemnly affirm that “ ultimately the standard of living of a country depends not on the wages and salaries paid, but on the amount of goods produced by its industries—primary and secondary.” This is at best only half the truth and thoroughly misleading. I should think Dr Hulme can remember that from 1930 to, say, 1934 goods were plentiful, but the standard of living very low, because many were unable to buy what they needed or desired. The standard of living in any country depends not only on what is produced, but on what proportion of that production, including what is obtained by exchange through trade, the people can afford to buy. Our trouble is that we receive—to use the language of the Southampton Chamber of Commerce—” utterly inadequate purchasing power wherewith to buy what we produce or what we get in exchange for our production.”—l am. etc.. Truth.