Prosperity Of The People

Chronicle (Levin), 4 May 1948, Page 7

Prosperity Of The People

V DUNEDIN, May 3. The Prxme Minister, Mr. FraSer, addressed the annual conference of the New Zealand Labour Party for two hours today. The press was not admit- , ted' and the substance of Mr. Fraser's address was supplied tonight. fhe fcxtent of the increase in expenditurdon soeial services was referred to b^-the'Prime Minister. For the year 1934-35 the . total of expenditure on soe'isLb serviees including pensions, education, health, war • pensions, mental hospitkls and* national provident, was £8/1 2 IjOOO.' ■ 'For 1947-48 the total under* the fsaind headings was £01,800,000. Pensions in the earJier period- amounted_ to £2)740,000 but in the last year the annual' value of soeial se'curity benelits was £40,754,000. Expenditure on education, ineluding buildings, was £2,805,000 in 1934-35: Last -linancial year the total expenditure was £9,950,000. • Many activities in the Health Department for the proinotion of public health, were responsible for an expenditure of £780,000 in 1934-35 but this ligurer had increased to £4,720,000 last year. - War pensions accounted for an increase from £1,264,000 in the earliei period to £5,050,000 in the last year. , " Evidence of the great increase in the prosperity, of the people, is the increase in the aggregate private income,

the total salaries and wages bill and also the savings of the people," said Mr. Fraser. "Even if it were assumed • that the cost of living had increased by 50 per eent. since 1935, the real value of- the increase in income and savings, after adjustment from the •price increase, is verv considerable. The aggregate private ineome in 193435 was £100,400,000 and in 1945-46 £326.100,000. If the latter figur* is adjusted to the value of mouey in 1935 oii the basis of a 50 per cent. increase in "the' cost of living, it would become ; £219,000,000. The increase in the real ; spending power in the 11-year period is therefore £113,000,000 of 107 per cent. j Similarly the total salaries and wages I bill increased from £65.700,000 in 1934- ! 35 to £189,000.000 in 1946-47. Adjusted. tliflfT935 inotid.y vatuCTon the-same basis, the latter ligure would become . £126,000,000, representing an increase in the real spending power of wage | eai-ners of £61,000,000 or 94 per cent. ! Savings in the Post Office, trustee j savings banks and national savings accounts, have increased from £60,709,000 ! at Marcli, 1935, to £220,414,000 at j March, 1948. The latter figure, adjust- ! ed in the same way to the 1935 monev | value, would become £147,000,000, repre- | senting an increase in the real spending ' power of depositors, of £86,000,000, an increase of 141 per cent.