PROFESSOR COPLAND

Southland Times, Issue 22770, 21 December 1935, Page 6

PROFESSOR COPLAND

VISIT TO NEW ZEALAND. AUSTRALIA’S POSITION. Professor D. B. Copland, of Melbourne University, has returned to New Zealand after an absence of four years. He reached Bluff by the Marama which berthed from Melbourne yesterday morning, and travelled to Waimate by car with his family. The professor is on a holiday visit to the Dominion and hopes to return home in the Marama which departs from Bluff for Melbourne in February. Born in Timaru in 1894, Professor Copland has had a distinguished career. He was educated at the Waimate District High School and at Canterbury College where he graduated with firstclass honours in economics in 1915. In 1916 he was a master at the Christchurch Boys’ High School, and in the following year was assistant lecturer in Economies at Canterbury College. Since 1924 he has been Professor of Commerce and Dean of the Faculty of Commerce at the Melbourne University. At different times Professor Copland has been economic adviser to the Governments of New Zealand and Australia, and was chairman of the committee of economists and under-Treasur-ers that reported to the Australian Loan Council in 1931 and initiated the Premiers’ Plan. The professor has published many authoritative works on economics, banking, currency and tariff. “I am purely on a holiday visit,” said Professor Copland to a Southland Times reporter yesterday, “and do not wish to become involved in any controversies concerning New Zealand affairs. I will say, however, that Australia has made as much progress from the depression as almost any country. She has used the methods followed in Great Britain namely, cheap money, progress towards budget equilibrium; depreciation of currency; and public works expenditure. “The unemployment figures have been reduced despite an increase in the population of over 5 per cent, since the depression,” continued the professor. “The last loan raised of £7,500,000 was well received, though the interest rate of 3f per cent, was a little higher than before. The general recovery is to be attributed to a plan in which most people believed. Australia’s position to-day is as hopeful as it can possibly be in a world that has not yet fully recovered.

The professor said that the State budgets would have a deficiency of about £2,505,000 against which there would be a Federal surplus of probably £2,000,000. This deficit was after meeting sinking fund payments of £8,500,000. Frequently this point was overlooked. Australia maintained her statutory sinking fund, while most countries, including Britain, suspended payments in whole or in part. On these standards Australia had a surplus in budgets.