UNEMPLOYMENT BILL

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVIII, Issue 23316, 27 September 1945, Page 6

UNEMPLOYMENT BILL

Second Reading Moved Work For All Needing It (Abridged P.A. Report) WELLINGTON, Sept. 26. In the House of Representatives tonight the Scientific and Industrial Research Amendment Bill, giving custody of the standard weights and measures to the department was put through all its remaining stages and passed, as was the Nurses and Midwives Bill. Tire Rt. Hon. P. Fraser, moving the second reading of the Employment Bill, said there had been requests for the Government to bring down some of its major measures. They would come along very quickly, but this Bill was part of the Government's major legislative programme. There was no more important question, and sometimes no more tragic one. than that of employment and unemployment. The Bill was one part of the Government's post-war provision against unemployment. Another wes indicated in the Budget in regard to the payment of unemployment benefits, and the conditions attaching to those payments would be set out in the Social Security Amendment Bill, which would be introduced in the next day or two. Mr Fraser said the Bill was of major importance, and one of the principal planks in the Labour Government's policy. The Bill would carry out the principles of the Atlantic Charter which was framed to establish freedom from want, and would prevent a recurrence of the terrible period our people went through in the last depression. It would remove fear of unemployment. “That phase has gone," declared Mr Fraser, "and will never come back again. This measure will ring the death knell of unemployment in this country ' Mr S. G. Holland agreed with the Prime Minister that the Bill was a major measure. He J not defend the slump nor the manner in which It was handled He preferred to tackle the question from the point of view of employment rather than unemolbvment. Full employment meant every man capable of working being actuallv in work When the tragedy of mass unemployment came over the world ail democratic countries handled it in much the same way. The dole was the most soul-destroying procedure ever adopted in New Zealand or any other country. Since then there had been a new conception of the responsil"’ity of governments and pa-'iamente. Today we accepted that it was the responsibility of the Government to provide jobs The debate was interrupted at 10.30 p.m.