PEOPLE PAY OWN SOCIAL SECURITY

Chronicle (Levin), 7 November 1946, Page 5

PEOPLE PAY OWN SOCIAL SECURITY

-Press Association

"V GOYERNMENT HAS NOTIIING TO GIVE

By Telearaph-

WELLINGTON, Nov.6. "The truth is that the Government has given you nothing," said Mr. C. H. Weston, K.C., National candidate for Wellington Central, at a nxeetihg when dealing with social seeurity and other • benefits, ' ' because it has nothing to give. All it can do Is to give back to us part of what wo have given it. It raay interest you to know that 75 poi cent. of the revenuo that it handles comes from the man earning salary or wages below £10 a week. " Quoting "New Zealand — A Modern Democracy" which, he said, had been wr-itten by the Miuister of Finance (Mr. Nash) for American consumption, there were no great extremes of wealth or poverty in the Dominion. Accor/ling to the .Minister less than 1 per cent. of income tax payers had incomes of £2000 or more, while the avcrage ineome was suliicient to ensure a good living standard for all. ' ' That is, according to Mr. Nash, 99 per cent. of income tax payers have incomes under £2000 per annum, " said Mr. Weston. "Cousqquently, the men and women with incomes up to £10 a week, or tlio lower paid men and women, pay the bulk of the taxes. Furthcr, they in the main have to support and cducate the young until they begin to earn, likewise the invalids, the unemployed, and the old people on pensions. ' ' However, the Labour Government claimed that it had given the people social seeurity aud family aliowances. "The truth is that the Government has given us nothing, because it has uoth ing to give," commented Mr. Weston. "When the Government, by statute or regulation, says vve are to get sometliing we pay for that ourselves, and threequarters comes from the working man in income tax, saies tax, wages tax, and all the° rest of them. Nothing comes from the Goyernment but what he in the main pay s for." For every pound by way of subsidy to the coal mine owners, the clothing manufacturers, and others, the man earning less than £10 weekly paid I5s by means of income tax, Customs duty, beer aud tobacco duty, and the filrn and totalisator taxes. "It is out of his pocket that the Government takes the inoney to do all the things it is- doing, " he added amidst applause.