THE POLITICAL POSITION.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 8208, 2 August 1905, Page 6

THE POLITICAL POSITION.

Financial Debate

{By Telegraph—Press Association)

Wellington, Last Night

The financial debate was opened this evening by Mr W. F. Massey, Leader of the Opposition lie began by saying that we were borrowing too much, and that a great deal of loan money was unwisely expended. The only policy in the Budget was a million loan, but there wore many Acts which permitted borrowing, and he predicted that the increase of the debt this year would be as great as last year-over £2,000,000. It was, he contended, absolutely impossible for members to understand the public works expenditure as to whether the money was properly expended or not, and he gave instances in which votes for the same work were contained under more than one class of the estimates, and it was a singular fact that those instances occurred in regard to roads on tho West Coast of the South Island. Last year Parliament voted £360,000 for roads and bridges in the country districts, and yet only £i:>i),Gl2 was spent. The same thing occurred in regard to the votes for school buildings, although all the Education .Boards were calling out for more funds, and children were actually going without education. The reason was

the desire of the Premier to have a "surplus." Mr Massey went on to refer to the audit system, which lie said had been so obscured by the Premier that tiie public did not understand it. He hoped that a proper audit would be insisted on in the near future. Our stocks were not nearly so good a price as they ought to be, and he believed that our extravagant borrowing was responsible for the depreciation of our credit, Mr Massey gave instances where expenditure was charged to capital accountinstead of to revenue. The result of all this sort of thing was that at least half of the surplus was accounted for. Ho believed that the accounts were put forward in this way to deceive the public. What was the good of talking about a surplus when the indebtedness was increasing every year. If the surplus really existed the natural inference was that taxation was too high.. Mr Massey read a circular to a mortgagor in the Advances to Settlers Department notifying him that he was required to insure in the State Ollice, and he asked what would be thought of a private individual who treated his mortgagors in that way '! "We must be economical," the Premier had said, but who, more than anyone else, was responsible for the enormous indebtedness of the Colony? For the Colonial Treasurer to preach economy was like Satan posing as an angel of light,

Hon. J. McGowan (Thames) contended that there had been no real criticism of the Budget, and while crying out against the increase of indebtedness Mr McGowan was wanting more money spent on roads and bridges. The best time to borrow money, he urged, was when credit was good---when the couniry was in a prosperous condition — as better terms could be obtained then than at another lime. As to the duplication of votes referred to by Mr Massey, he pointed out that the district referred to was a mining district, and votes for mining had to be devoted to it as well as votes for roads and bridges. The argument about charging to capita] instead of revenue was the same old story, and he contended that very much of the amount now charged to capital ought not to be charged to revenue. There was, for instance, the new Court at Dunedin, which it was quite reasonable should be charged to capital. The same argument applied to the railways, otherwise the charges for butter, meat and so on would have to be increased, and the industries would thereby be made to suffer. There were only two alternatives — either to charge the expenditure to loan or to increase the freight charges further. The consolidated fund had paid very large sums into the public works fund, so that the works done were properly charged to the capital account and were really done out of revenue. As to the. methods of the State Fire Insurance Company he urged that similar methods Avere employed by other institutions, and there was nothing unreasonable in the State office endeavouring to influence business in that way. The Minister proceeded to attack Mr Massey on his freehold proclivities and his desire to get the unearned increment for nothing, pointing out the enormous increase in the value of land during the last few years and the very large principle which was thereby involved. Instead of this cry for the freehold they should look at the question from the point of view of the increase in the value of land which had taken place since the tenants first acquired possession. He concluded by quoting at great length figures to prove the prosperous condition of the Colony since the present Government came into power, as compared with its condition under previous administrations. Besides giving figures to show that the North Island is receiving its fair share of Public Works expenditure as compared with the South.

Mr Ilerries (Bay of Plenty) twitted the Premier with having required a dozen years to realise that the Mines Department was being administered in a parsimonious manner, and contrasted the present administra tion in this respect unfavourably with the administration of the late Hon. A. Cadman. There should, he contended, be no surplus in the Public Works Fund. The money ought to be spent, and a surplus in that fund showed that the Minister was not doing his duty in expending the money. This year ways and means for public works would be over two millions, and he hoped the appropriations would be correspondingly large.

Mr D. Reid (Taieri) congratulated the Government upon its surplus, but he confessed he could not understand how the surplus had been arrived at, in face of the fact that the general trade in the Colony during the past twelve months had been slacker than for some time previously.

[The debate was proceeding when the telegraph office closed.]