GOVERNMENT PROMISES

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19135, 2 October 1936, Page 8

GOVERNMENT PROMISES

INDUSTRIAL VOLCANO "CRISIS COMING" CHRISTCHURCH CRITICISM "We are standing on the edge of an industrial volcano," said Mr. *S. (.!. Holland, in an address to constituents at Shirley, Christchureh. The .Ministers were going round the country trying to pacify the workers, among whom there was much unrest, said Mr. Holland. The Government had a record ol broken promises, said Mr. Holland. Before the election it promised that there would be no taxation increases. Tim graduated land tax had been trebled to return £1,300,000. It had promised to take off the sales tax, but now it was collecting more than ever. It had promised to remove the exchange; but uo action had been taken so far. There was an additional burden on the farmer through increased costs, said Mr. Holland. One instance of this was the increase in the cost of freezing. It was estimated, he said, that the actual und prospective increase Jn freezing costs would amount to £460,003 per annum. This represented an increase of 7jrd on every o6ib lamb that passed through the works. STATE OVERTIME RATES Mr. Holland dealt also with the overtime rates in government departments. New rates for several departments bad been gazetted last week. An examination of the figures would show, he said, that tbe overtime rates were less thou the normal rates. A man getting I & an hour was to get 2s. Id overtime. A man getting 2s lid an hour would get 2s 6d an hour overtime where i private enterprise would have to pay 4s 10 Jd, while one getting 4s 8d an hour in a government department would get 3s 6d overtime as against 7s, twice us much, from private enterprise. Wage increases had been given, said Mr. Holland, but they had been suit stantially cancelled out by the increased cost of living. Industrialists who hat been largely responsible for the change in Government, had been left in tin air, he said. Greatly increased costs hat v been imposed by legislation and no com

pensatory protection had' been provided. As a result, many large orders were going overseas. TUN BASIC WAGE Mr. Holland dealt also with the basic wa< r e. There was no need -for a basic wage, he said. Industry could not afford to provide for 640,000 non-existent people supposed to be dependent on workers over the age of 21. The increased holidays if applied to all workers would mean a cost of £420,000. Although the Government had made much of the unemployment question, it was a fact that, the .number of unemployed had increased since Decern tier of last year. The Monthly Abstract of Statistics for August showed that there were 45,045 unemployed on the register at that time. This was 9000 more than when the Government took over. Expenditure should be governed by income, Mr. Holland said. Yet though the price of fleece, wool, New Zealand's main product, was 9d per lb. in 1935 as against 15d per lb. in 1931, the Government was indulging in "champagne" expenditure. Mr. Holland strongly criticised the Government for starting the nationalisation of industry by starting two joinerv factories without giving private enterprise the chance to provide the joinery required and for placing orders for thousands of pounds worth of joinery machinery without calling for tenders.