INTEREST-FREE LOAN

Waikato Times, Volume 106, Issue 22612, 17 May 1945, Page 6

INTEREST-FREE LOAN

CRITICISM BY INDEPENDENT Commenting on an interest-free advance of £6OOO to a group of miners for an amusement hall, Mr Douglas Seymour, Independent candidate for the Hamilton by-election, at a meeting at Hillcrest last night said it was unfortunate for the Labour Party that the present system of keeping the national accounts necessitated the public disclosure of such largesse, which was particularly unfortunate for the Government at election time. This was one of the advantages of taking over the Bank of New Zealand, when overdraft accounts could be opened up in favour of “useful people” and favoured organisations, without the public being able to get any information. This was precisely what had been done in Germany, where the banks had been taken over by the Nazis and liberal accounts opened for Nazi leaders and organisations. The next step after taking over the F.ank of New Zealand would be to introduce conditions of banking discriminating against foreign banks operating here, which would then be obliged to close. Thus the banking system of the country would then be completely in the hands of the party caucus and the Federation of Labour. Replying to a question Mr Seymour said that there seemed no prospect whatever of any increase in New Zealand’s population, within measurable time, which would materially affect the country’s powers of defence. By 1960 twothirds of the whole population of the world would consist of dark people living round the shores of the Pacific

and Indian Oceans. These would number some 1800 millions. No one seriously contended that by 1960 the joint population of New Zealand and Australia could be raised to 20 millions. “It seems obvious that if we cannot live on friendly terms with our dark neighbours our only course will be to ‘pack the portmanteau,’ ” said the speaker.