SECURITY

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22504, 12 September 1938, Page 4

SECURITY

TO THB EDITOR OF TH» PRESS. Sir, —The Government’s notable Social Security Bill has now been passed. To remove as far as possible the fear of poverty from the minds of all is perhaps the best and the most worth-while work that coiild engage the attention of any government. But, while admitting this, the thought arising in the mind of every thinking person must surely be, “What about our national security in view of the conditions existing to-day?” Very little is heard of this and one can listen in to Parliament for days and weeks without hearius it Taeutioued. Yet at the best, it seems to be generally agreed that the only real question is how long the evil day can be staved off.

Putting all sentiment aside, it would be a bad day for this country if there should be a breach of the peace on a large scale in Europe, while if England should be defeated —which is, unfortunately, by no means an impossibility —we should probably cease to exist as a nation. Only a short time ago one of our most prominent and outspoken Ministers, in the course of an eloquent speech, let fall the following significant words: “If there should be war, and England should go under, we should go under, too. Let there be no delusions about that.” In the face of all this the present Government appears content to spend weeks on the complaisant consideration of a social security and superannuation scheme that will not come into full fruition fo. nearly 30 years, while the larger issue is seldom, if ever, mentioned. If the position was not so serious it would be almost laughable. .My purpose is not to belittle what is being done in the slightest degree; but it is rather to emphasise the fact that Mr Savage and his colleagues are extremely fortunate in being able to devote so much of their time and energies to such work and to do so under the protecting folds of the British flag, of which England is of course the mainstay. We in New Zealand fail very badly to appreciate properly the immense obligations we' are under to the Mother Country.—Yours, etc..

GEORGE INGRAM. September 11, 1938.