P. AND T. CIRCULAR.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17345, 27 September 1924, Page 15

P. AND T. CIRCULAR.

“ INSPIRED POLITICAL PROPAGANDA.” MINISTER’S STRONG REPLY Per Pnr.ss Association. WE LLI NT rTON, Se ptem her 27. The Postmaster-General (the Hon J. G. Coates) has made a statement in reply to the circular sent by the Secretary of the Post and Telegraph Officers’ Association 'Air H. E. Combs) to th© Junior Officers’ Post and Telegraph Association. The Alinistor points out that the extravagant demands made by the association a few months ago would, it granted, have meant an additional grant of £*450,000 for the current year. The. increase granted under the new salary scale will amount- to over £IOO,OOO for this >©a r. The circular referred to suggested that the iunior officers should protest to the member of Parliament for the district against the reduction of Land and Income Tax, while th© Government refused the junior officer, as a public servant, a decent living. The Minister says he has good reason to believe that every officer who thinks for himself is now iully alive to the fact that Mr Combs has been on ail electioneering campaign during the last few years, and that all the agitation engineered by him had been political, and in the main had l>eeii inspired. The Minister considers itdeplorable that the principal officers of the association should allow paid officials to carry on a propaganda with which the large majority of the officers entirely disagree.