DOUGLAS CREDIT.

Thames Star, Volume LXV, Issue 19374, 3 April 1935, Page 2

DOUGLAS CREDIT.

OBJECTS OF MOVEMENT. Monetary Reform Urged. .i i ECONOMIC PROBLEMS. ADDRESS BY COLONEL CLOSEY. Monetary reform and the rehabilitation of the Dominion, as advocated along the lines of Douglas Social Credit, were features dealt with by Colonel J. S. E. Closey, in his address to a well-attended meeting at Ngatea last evening. Mr. J. W. Neate presided. Colonel Closey outlined the condition of other countries, the plans they had adopted and how far they had progressed. With these he compared New Zealand, deprecating the idea that the Dominion was reliant for recovery on outside interests or trade in foreign markets. To-day, he said, this country was behind all other countries and must concern itself earnestly about its political movements. The trend at present was from protectionism to national planning and to dictatorship, and by such the country was heading towards chaos.

No Over-production

New .Zealand had outgrown its monetary system and was at least six years behind the times. To-day the legislators were covering ground which had been tried and found wanting in other parts of the world, and the people were being defrauded of 90 per cent, of the wealth of living they were entitled to. The crux of the situation, it was said, was that far more" produce was being supplied than the world could consume. Wheat, cotton, coffee, rubber and tea had been destroyed in various countries in an attempt to raise the prices of the commodity, yet the problem had not been solved. The trouble was not due to over-production, but to the lack of ability on the part of people to buy. Purchasing power had to be expanded, and it was on these lines tho speaker's movement would work. This could be accomplished by a chango in the monetary system, said the Colonel. It had to be realised money must cease to be issued on gold, and controlled instead by trade and commerce.

Currency Control.

New Zealand was considering quotas as an avenue out of the difficulty, but they were unworkable. What was required immediately was an increase in consumption, and a new system for the issuing- of currency. Douglas Credit advocated control of the Central Reserve B~ank, doing away with dummy directors and placing in their stead a committee of nine representatives. Profit-making would be dispensed with in this institution, and the right amount of money, enough for the commodities New Zealand had for sale, would be issued. If control were to be given the movement today £7,000,000 would be passed to the people in order to restore industry in a balanced way. Firstly, however, said Colonel Closey, the farmer's returns would be increased out of this amount tili he had an equitable return for his produce. The consumers would then be given a discount on the necessities of life to increase their purchasing power, which would mean more consumption, more work and less unemployment.

Finding the Money.

The speaker continued by asserting there would be no mystery as to where the money would como from. It would be controlled by the balance between supply and demand. Conservatives were quite prepared to worship the present money system, which had served so long and was called sound finance. The address concluded with a denouncement of the big monied interest, which the speaker said controlled finance the world over foi the benefit of the few.

While answering a question regarding the issue of costless credit, Colonel Closey held that officialdom took no interest in the welfare of the unemployed, nor in any way was; attempting to solve the problem of putting men to work. In Auckland an attempt had been made to arrange for the issue of municipal money, but on the casting vote of the chairman of a special -committee set up to deal with the question, the project had been thrown out, and the only reason was that it was feared there would be an influx of unemployed to the city from all parts of the Dominion. It was considered that the scheme would have to be adopted on national lines. The matter had not been allowed to lapse, and the Returned Soldiers' Association was taking up the attack in every city and town in the near future.

Mrs. Smith, president of the Waikato Douglas Credit Association, also addressed the meeting briefly, relating the position of young people to-jjay and the chances that would be given them under the Douglas movement. Votes of thanks were accorded the speakers.