GENEROUS REFORM

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 492, 23 October 1928, Page 13

GENEROUS REFORM

FOURTH edition

more liberal than LIBERALS minister breaks long SILENCE Press Association. GISBORNL. To-day. Addressing his constituents for the I Jt time since he was elected to Parlent elKht years ago, the Minister I , Public Works, the lion. K. S. WilI Hams, opened his election campaign I i Tokomaru Hay last evening. 1 The people of the Dominion, he said, I wed It to themselves and future gen--1 ..'itions to give the question very arnest consideration beforo deciding “ nut the present Government out of office and replacing it with a party which proposed to embark upon a policy of experimental legislation which Ld proved disastrous in other countries. r*hc electors, he said, must consider the relative merits of tile two I opposiug parties. Ho ventured to sug--ost that a careful analysis could only favour Reform. The Minister criticised several planks ui the Labour platform, expressing his opposition to a State Bank, and contending tliat the time when Parliament controlled the banks would be disastrous for the country. Labour’s criticism of the Dominion's financial position had been answered effectively by the result of the last loan, which 1 had been favourably commented upon by the highest financial critics in England. It would be necessary for : some time to come to continue to borrow for public works, but the aim of the Government was to reduce the dead-weight debt, mainly war debt, which provided the heaviest burden of the taxpayers. STATE ADVANCES Th« speaker gave credit to the Litoral Government for its inauguration of pensions and State advances, but maintained that no Government could have more liberalised these jsc-hemes than the present one. Regarding State advances, he pointed out that during the last 16 years of Liberal administration, £16,000,000 had been advanced, wheeras Reform, during a similar period, had advanced £43.000.000. lie deprecated the tendency. however, for State advances to be called upon to supply all the finance. Those able to afford a slightly higher rate should apply elsewhere, thus conserving funds for the more needy workers and email farmers. Mr. Williams condemned Labour’s policy of an all-round increase in pensions. The Government already had increased the value of pensions by removing restrictions, reducing the age, and increasing the weekly payment. Its future policy was to further remove restrictions, thereby encouraging thrift and enterprise rather than to make a general increase in payments. An important question affecting pensions was the position of returned solaiers who were only now beginning to show effects of their war service. This problem was a growing one, and required cart.’ul consideration, for the Government was determined that those who suffered through the war should receive the primary consideration. The Minister dealt with unemployment upon familiar lines, pointing out mat New Zealand suffered less than other countries. Relief work had coped with the position as well as possible and men’s earnings on the average- had been satisfactory. Pie would not countenance any policy which might result in permanent Public Horks employees being put out of work, thereby creating a permanent unemployment problem. The Minister eulogised the operations of the Highways Act. which enaoied settlers in isolated parts to rec i\q good access without paying unduly heavy rates, and said every one "ould agree this legislation had been eneticial to the whole Dominion.' A vote of thanks and confidence was turned unanimously’.