CAMPAIGN OPENS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17236, 16 April 1930, Page 8

CAMPAIGN OPENS

PARNELL BY-ELECTION I UNITED CANDIDATE’S PLEA labor promises prosperity. ti J er Froas Association.! AUCKLAND, last night, i The Parnell by-election campaign opened to-night, when meetings weie addressed by Mr. W. A. Donald (United), and Mr T. Bloodwortli (Labor), lliere were good attendances and eacli candidate received a cordial reception and vote of confidence. Mr. Donald said the Parnell electors had a unique opportunity at the byelection to give a vote oi confidence to the Government. He reviewed tlie Government’s achievements in its i 8 months of office, and submitted that the t. nited Party should he given a chance to bring its programme to completion, itie Go\erinnent bad been under a nig handicap through being without an independent majority in the House and because of the fact that it had to begin its administration faced with a deficit of £ooo,600. Mr. Donald deduced from the tact that certain primage duties would be removed at the end of the month that the Prime Minister would be able, to announce a small surplus in the national accounts for tin 1 financial year jnst ended. Mr. Donald said that if the verdict went against the Government at the by-election, there, was a risk of the country being plunged into the expense of a general election. He criticised the Reform Party, claiming that Ministers in the late Government had lost control of their departments, and that their administration had been extravagant. He had every confidence that the United Government would, in a few years, be able completely to eradicate unemployment. The Minister of Labor, the Hon. Vv. A. Veitch, also spoke briefly, contending that (lie call was for stability in government, and the Parnell electors should not c!o anything to weaken the Government’s position. Mr. Bloodwortli based bis appeal on what lie described as the complete failure of the other parties which, he said, had governed New Zealand by catchwords. Labor, on the other hand, would introduce real measures. _ It ottered men of experience in public affairs, and would give effect to measures calculated to restore prosperity, increase land settlement and industrial development, providing employment for more labor. Mr. BloocLvortii said that instead of seeking to bring a general election about, Labor considered it to the country’s advantage to support the party in power. He expressed a hope that Parnell would follow the lead ol Britain and Australia and vote Labor. This election, he said, provided an opportunity for showing whether or not public, opinion kept abreast of public opinion in other parts of the Empire. POSITION OF THE ROLL (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, last night. Returns made available by the Electoral Department indicate that the total number of electors on the general and supplementary rolls for Parnell is 14,096, which" is l'S more than the number enrolled for the General Election. On that occasion, only 12.179 of the electors recorded their votes. The number of electors on the No. 2 supplementary roll, which has been, compiled for the by-election, is 1895. The total number of removals from the General arid the" No. 1 supplementary rolls is 2979, and the number of changes ol address recorded since the General Election is 585. Arrangements are now being made by the chief electoral officer for absentee voters to record their votes on May 7 with post-masters.