BACKS TO THE WALL

Taranaki Daily News, 21 September 1931, Page 15

BACKS TO THE WALL

EARL HAIG’S FAMOUS DISPATCH. NEW ZEALAND PARALLEL TO-DAY. “The present situation in New Zealand reminds me of the situation on the Western Front, during the Great War, when Sir Douglas Haig put out :his great ‘Baeks to the Wall’ dispatch, said the president (Mr. A. O. Wilkinson) at a meeting of the council of the :Canterbury Chamber of Commerce last : week. “In that dispatch, Haig told his men that their backs were to the wall, and that they could fight their way through,” added Mr. Wilkinson. “The position economically is the same in New Zealand to-day. And I am sure that the councillors of this - chamber, with their backs against the wall, can fight their way through to rehabilitation.” Mr. Wilkinson briefly outlined some of the problems which awaited the council’s attention. First and foremost was the problem of unemployment, on which they had already debated, and which was to have further attention. They must consider also the positions of both primary and secondary industries, giving perhaps more attention to secondary industries than they had done in the past. There were also the important questions of trade with Canada, Australia, Java, and the East. “I would also draw your attention to the ease with which legislation is now sroing through Parliament,” continued Mr. Wilkinson. “The Parliamentary Bills Committee has recently called attention to this fact. There is no doubt that legislation is going through far too easily, and much of it is not in the best interests of the community. One of the latest Bills, the Painters’ and Decorators’ Registration Bill, aims to prevent an employer using his staff in a slack time even to whitewash a fence.