UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF

Taranaki Daily News, 3 August 1931, Page 5

UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF

MR. C. A. WILKINSON’S TRIBUTE. PRODUCTIVE WORK ADVOCATED. A tribute to the excellent manner in which the Hon. S. G. Smith, Minister of .Labour, was doing his duties was made by Mr. C. A. Wilkinson, M.P. for Egmont, in his address at Omata on Sa,turday. Mr. Smith, he said, had an unpleasant and formidable'task. Mr. Wilkinson regarded Mr. Smith as one of the most efficient members of the. Cabinet and expressed the hope that he would be able to continue the good work,..

Mr. Wilkinson said he made no apology for supporting the Unemployment Bill. About £3,000,000 would be raised in that way but that would not be sufficient. It had been suggested that they should borrow money for the relief of unemment, as would be done in the case of war, but there was no analogy. He did not favour borrowing money fpr the relief of unemployment as that meant shelving the burden on to posterity instead of facing the position, whereas in the case of war the life of the country was at stake. They must provide the money by way of taxation for the relief of unemployment. They could not go on paying unemployed men for non-productive work, however. Those who worked must produce sufficient to pay their wages.'Any other scheme would prove a terrible burden on the taxpayers. Mr. Wilkinson referred to the great number of single men who were unemployed. He considered they could be engaged in groups on the land producing their own keep and more. They could then be employed for 5} days a week instead of two. They could ,'grow vegetables or raise sheep. The men must be urged to do productive work and given slightly extra inducement to do so; there would be no need to force them. There were great opportunities to employ the men at tree planting and some men could be employed protecting dangerous railway crossings. If possible tradesmen should be given work to which they were accustomed. Mr. Wilkinson expressed the hope that the new Unemployment Board would tackle the question in that way.