TAXATION CRITICISED

Chronicle (Levin), 4 September 1946, Page 7

TAXATION CRITICISED

-Press Association

* r Budget Debate Resumed

By Telegraph—

WELLINGTON, Sept. 3. The Opposition was anxious to obtain the Treasury benchos for the express purpose of repeaiing much of the radi cal legislatiou whieh the Labour Gov ernment had passed in the last devon years, said Mx>. \V. T. Anderton (Eden. in the JLLouse of Kepresentatives to night Wlien the Budget debate was re sumed. lle said that the Nationa. Party's policy for the elections wouh. be deflutionary in charaeter with ail iticonsequent evils, because sueli a polic\ was in the interests of those wlioiu tln X'ational Barty served. That poiict would tlireaten the savings of tln people and their nioney would /iiul it.way into the pockets of the idle rlcl 1 (Opposition laughtcr). Mr. Anderton dedared that the Xa ti'onal Party's policy would involvi widespread cuts and reductions. lli described the Budget as a "preserva tion Budget ' ' because it maititaiuo social servicos and tlie standard o. living. It would be most nocessarv i New Zealaml wero to. have a planueu economy, for the Governnient to havi control of sterling exchange but tlu X'ational Barty, by using sterling funds would show its pre-ference to suppoi'1 thc labour of another countrv ralhei than the labour in New Zcaland. Xo long as the people kopt their saving in ihe banks and purchased only neces sities, therc would be no inflation in tlie Doniiiiion. Mr. K. M. Algic: Whai a lit'c. Mr. Anderton challcngcd thc Oppo sition to produce its policy. .Mr. II. G. Gerard: The honourabb gcnlleniau is a good (isheriuan. Mr. Anderton then referred to a statcmeiit wliicli he said had bcen madc by Mr. Gerard, to the ell'ect that if a X'ational tlovernment werc not returned, thc Uuvcriiinent would be Conuuun ist. " If there is not to be a Laboui Guveniiiieut l would sobner bc t'om mu it is t than X'ational," said ALr. An dcrton, who added that that was no; only the feeling oi' tlie publie in Nci\ Zcaland but also the whole world was ioaniug to'ward tlie Lel't. Labour luui proved its power to rule and govern and had placed New Zcaland 011 a safc ecouomic i'oundation. It had show 11 that it e otihi give the people of tln nation a fair and equilable sliarc in ali things thcy jiroduceil. Mr. F. W. Duidge (Tauranga) said that during thc war years thc publie cxiiccled phenuinenal Budg'ots and fantastic costs although it was kuown thc Govcnuneiit was using the war to hidc its incrcasiiig cxpenditure 011 .Socialisin. rhis year the cust of that socialistic progi'auimc uas revealed by the Budget wliicli sliowcd tiiat the countrv-. was bcing chargcd hundreds of. millionis for Socialisin. (I'axutiou .ilncrcascd by 3l)b ]>cr ceijtjiiif -Ihe war years put tlie couatry uas eutitled to.:loo:k'foi soniething niot:e jtluui :K»rcduetion .oi' a-.mere •S per c'liiU.' n.ow that ther wad- was over, What : solace did.' the fantijy . rimu.; draw .froin tlie-- Budgdt u'lien, i!dr instanciy, he ifoiuid he still Iiail .to pay livepcnye in tax: ow't-'of -the price of a gluss oj0iccr . : M.r.- F, Hackett: VoluntUry •tajpdlioir! ; .i Mr. '-Doidge said 5-Yd ou t oikiiie pric of eacli packel of cigarettes went ti Mr. Nash. Alr. 8pea ker said t he."M i nistcr lnustnot be referred to by.Vrinm"e. Alr. Doidgo said t'oo niiich taxation was going into tlie [>ockot of tlie XI iu istor of Kiuauco. Goveninient voiccs: It gocs to tln Statc. Mr. Doidgo said tliat * for. .years tio' Minlstcr of Finaiu'e had 1 >een Iiijng j. riotous lifc oi' national cxpenditure

Tlie Minister 's denuunls f'or; oxpendi ture had. ris.cn • frotn f 32J.i)U(i,t)U(i t.en .years ago to ijHtlJ,UUthllti()-. Therc wasj ti curreul quip t'liat1 tli'c uErnp'f ror o'fj .lapan, -following the • dcfcat of' liis; "countrv, had renounccd al j prejcntions fo divinity biit SlirieiPVvti^ the"Al inister ; of Finance going ,.to ..follow fhat ex- 1 ainple . . • . • Go\ criiinei^t, nieinber: Wlieu do. we laugh .' . , Mr. Epeakcr: I thiuk the. Bouourablc j Mcmber iiiust withdraw that remark. Ile is c-arrying liis criticisui' too far. j Mr. Doidgc then withdraw and said, lic thought Mr. Willianis, in .suggesting i during Ihe debate that tlie .) Force sliould bc withdrawn, lnust have bcen ilviiig a kite with the (fovornineut 's a]»proval, to test tlie reaction of thc; llouse and countrv to tlie idea. Bri-i tain's obligations in the 1-hist wero 110, lcss tlian those of thc United Statcs.; Wc had to strive to aid Britain in ro-, gaining ihe positiou siie had tcinporar--ilv lost as a leadiug world Power. Thc British Euipire had lost more lives in the recenl war than the I'nited Statcs' anil thc war had cost thc British people niore proportionatcly 1 hau it cost thc Americans. We, ourselves nuist acccjit hui' share of rcsponsibility for del'eiicc in the PaeiJic and niust lie prejiared toi acrept a greater dcfenco cxpenditure. Britain had the right to cxpci-t 011 r holp aiul we sliould retaiu our force iu Japan as long as Britain. askcd 11s to1 do so. It was iu any case a 110 greater hurdon than we niust. bc. ])rc)iarcd to 1 acccpt in the Pacilic in our joiut progranune with Australia. Mr. Doidge said that for tlie last lon years the slump bogey had bcen thc chief political plaint of thc Labour Governnient wliicli had also introduccd two other bogies — that the Xatioiuill Par.ty wouJd cut wages and rcduce pcnsiims whcn it became thc (lovcrnnicnt. lle denied that sueli a eourse would bc' takcn. "But, that docs not iiicau wc would not acccpt rcsponsibility for thc. adiuinistration of thc Social Sccurity Fund without considerablc anxicty, " he said. Mr. Thorn: Sn y that again. Mr. Doidgc said that whcn in oflioo thc X'ational I>arty would have to lind i l(),()()(),()()t) for social sccurity. Tlie latc Mr. Forbes, in the slump years, re_quired less tlian that to niu thc wholc countrv aud found it iinpossiblc to ra ise £35,000, 000 that lic rcquircd, but wlien the X'ational Party canic into ottice it would waut to do inorc than Ihe Labour Party had donc. Tlie Xa tional Party would waut to sec that the people were paid in real inoncy tliat had some purchasing power. j -Mr. Thorn: What canling liuuibug. Mr. Doidgc said that cverv recipiciit! of social securitv kncw that inflation had New Zcaland in its grip aud wcek ' by wcck nioney tcndeil more aird morc' to lo.se its iiK'uning. Tlie jieople knewj that if the Labour Governnient remained in otlice tliat thc positiou would; worscn. lle said that thc X'ational; Party, whcn in otlice, would destroyj class liatrcd and reslore harmouy i 11 j industry. ' ' The Jlouse rose at 10.30 p.m. untill 2.30 p.m. tnmorrow.