FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19767, 15 February 1927, Page 6

FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

The New South Wales Premier has struck out on a new inal wholesale attack on the freedom of the Press raised such line in respect of his proposed tax on newspapers. His origan outcry that he modified his proposal by exempting the smaller papers. Possibly the fact that the larger papers were politically opposed to him might have been only a coincidence. Now Mr Lang finds that the Australian High Court is like-

ly to veto his measure as unconstitutional. But he is not dismayed. He declares that, in that event, he will introduce a tax on advertisements. He thinks that, by this means, he will still be able to penalise the newspapers. He will, no doubt, but he will be taking it out of their readers as well. The business man who runs a big advertisement will, of

course, have to pay the eost of the tax in addition to the ad- '■< vertising rate. He will, naturally enough, “pass it on,” and his customers will find that the index number of the cost of living has risen still another point. The small advertiser who cannot pass the tax on will be still harder bit. But the worst case of all will be the man out of a job who advertises for employment. Decidedly, he will wonder by what process of reasoning a Government calling itself Labour can justify a penalty upon him for being out of work.

The older political parties have respected the principle of the freedom of the Press. If any party has much to gain by a free Press and still more to lose by a muzzled one it is the Labour Party. It is strange that a Labour Premier should be found leading the way in such an attack. However, it is bound to recoil upon him, and help to the undoing of certainly the worst Government the State of New South Wales has ever had.