THE PEOPLE'S SAVINGS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18858, 8 November 1935, Page 10

THE PEOPLE'S SAVINGS

LABOR PARTY POLICY REPLY TO CRITICISM EFFECT OF EXCHANGE (Pot Press Association.) CIIRTSTCHURCH, this day. The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. M. ,1 Savage, addressed a meeting in the Choral Hall to-night. The hall was crowded, although the night, was wet and wintry. The Mayor, Mr. P. (*. Sullivan, M.P., presided, \ Mr. Savage was given a most corthal welcome, the audience singing "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow," and, at the conclusion of the address, a motion was carried by a show of hands, with one dissentient, expressing thanks to the speaker and confidence in the Labor I'ai'tv.

Air. Savage dealt at length with some of the tactics employed by Government organisers in their attempts to discredit the Labor Party in the eyes of the electors. He slated that large and expensive advertisements were appearing m the press, the object, of which was to stampede people into believing that their savings would not- be safe under Labor administration. Such propaganda came very badly from a Government, which by its own deliberate act in raising the rate of exchange had brought the value of the New Zealand pound from 20s down to 16s Id. Tf some of the Government mathematicians were to go into figures, they would have no difficulty in advising electors just what that meant to depositors in the Post Office Savings Bank, who had t 49.423.714 standing to their credit at March 31, 1935.

3s lid IN THE POUND DESTROYED Every person who deposited in any bank a pound worth 20s before the raising of the exchange could at present draw from the bank a pound worth only 16s Id. The same applied to the total deposits of all banks, which amounted to approximately £120,000,000. The raising of the rate of exchange, had without any run on hanks, destroyed 3s lid out of every pound of the people's sayings. Another aspect of the matter, said Mr. Savage, was that working men were not allowed to have savings in any bank so long as they were employed under the Unemployment Act. Before men could qualify for relief work they were bound to use up their savings. The Government propaganda against Labor was in'ended to convey the impression that under a Labor administration the Post Office Savings Bank would not be able to meet the demands of its depositors. The Fact was that undue demands could not be met now as the great bulk of the money had been invested in other undertakings, some of them of very questionable value.

All the, banks were in a similar position, which did not mean that they were not solvent, but it did mean that the misleading .picture drawn by the Government of the possibilities under Lab.or Government would apply to-day if the banks were put to an unfair test. The object of Labor was to make it possible for the people to have something to save and then to safeguard those savings.