LABOUR’S PETITION.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 493, 30 June 1932, Page 4

LABOUR’S PETITION.

Seeking Recall of Coalition Government. ADDRESS BY LEADER. Per Press Association. AUCKLAND, June 30. Reasons why the Labour Party is demanding the recall of the Coalition Government were outlined by the leader (Mr Holland) in an address to an audience that almost filled the Town Hall last night. Mr Holland strongly criticised recent legislation and claimed that the people should be given an opportunity of expressing an opinion on various far-reaching measures. Mr Holland, referring to the Ottawa Conference, complained that the Labour Party had not been given representation on the New Zealand delegation, j with the result that the quarter of a million people who had voted for Labour members were not represented. He contended that the Dominion should seek a definite agreement with Britain, under which she would take a stated quantity of our products and we would take a stated quantity of her goods.. Following that we should make a similar arrangement with other British Dominions and then seek to arrive at an agreement with any other country willing to trade with us on the basis of reciprocity. The speaker referred to the petition which the Labour Party is now circulating. calling upon the Government to resign, and devoted the greater part of his address to dealing with measures enacted during the recent session of Parliament, claiming that as the Government had put through legislation that had not been mentioned during the election campaign it should now give the electors the right to say ■whether these far-reaching changes should be allowed to go into effect. Among the measures were the flat rate wages tax without an accompanying income tax steeply graded to catch the higher incomes, the action of Parliament in extending its own life, which he held was undemocratic and unconstitutional, and reduction of pensions, particularly old age, and miners’ and widows’ pensions. As other reasons for recalling the present Government he instanced the mismanagement of the unemployment problem and the amendments to the Industrial Conciliation , and Arbitration Act which, he said, had been put through at the behest of the Manufacturers’ Association, and placed in the hands of employers power to prevent any case going from the Conciliation Council to the Arbitration Court. After further criticising the record of the Government Mr Holland said that the Labour Party stood for econo- < mie reconstruction and rehabilitation in i industry of men and women at stan- 1 dard wages, which would restore their ]

_ i purchasing power and would mean « financial equilibrium in New Zealand. > The speaker touched briefly on the • rate of exchange and contended there 1 should be no forcing up of the«rate. 5 A resolution carried thanked Mr Hoi- f land for his address, and after express- 1 ing indignation at the Government’s ( policy and administration, expressed the e opinion that the Government's failure to deal with the vital problems of the } Dominion provided substantial reason 1 for its resignation with a view to sub- 1 mitting its policy to the electors. 1