OBLIGATIONS TO BE MET

Chronicle (Levin), 14 December 1949, Page 4

OBLIGATIONS TO BE MET

Press Associationi

— — ; m — Mr. Holland's Message To Ex-Servicemen

(Per

WELLINGTON, Dec. 13. "On taking offide as h'eail 6f the new Government, my first concern is that all obligations to those who fought and made sacrifices for their eountry shail.be mfet. in full," states the^Brime Minister (Mr. Holland) , in a message to returned men, publishfe'd in the current issue of the R.S.A. Review. "We will carry -on in the same spirit, and in this i feel that we are f ortunate in having in biir ranks " such a high proportion of returned solcliers of both wars-. Bix of the nine new membei's elected to our party are ex-servicemen, two of them being ex-servicemen of the Secohd World War. I feel that, with this strong representation of those 'ehtitled to w'ear the R.S.A. badgbi we are fortunately "plac'ed ih Carrying oht these all-important responsibilities. "We realise that there is still a debt to be dischargad to many exservicemen before their rehabilitation is completed. To this end, rehabilitation services will be maintained and improved. Eyery effort will be made to expedite acquisition and subdivision of land to enable the settlement of returned soldiers on the land to be completed. Modifica■tions of the Land Baies Act, while not imposing any additional costs on soldier-buyers, will, we believe, hdve the effect of ttiakihg more land available. Housing of ex-servicembn, too, will be an urgent priority. Dfefence System. "Ex-servicemen, having already pl'ayed their part in de'fence, and bfeing well aware of the sacrifices iri'acte to preserve our democratic way of life, are naturally interested in defence policy. Here, again, we are fortunate in the number of members of Parliament who have had war service and can speak on military, naval and air force matters from personal experience. It will be the uiiited desire 'of the National Party Government to maintain an efficient defehce establishrfieht so "as to bear our full share of defence responsibilities, consistent with the resources •> of the . countfy. As the , National Party supported the pfihciplb of cbinpulsory service, the training scheme recently instituted (vffi, of course, be carried on. The highest standards of health, instructi'oh and efficiency will be the objective, and there will be the closest cooperation and uiiderstandiiig with Great Brltaih, Australia, Canada, South Africa ahd the U.S.A. ih dfefence matters, particularly concerning the Pacific zone, ih which we are so vitally interested. "Our view, as a party, is that Empire unity and solidarity are aii indispensable factor in preserving world peace. We will alwa'ys be ready tb do our part in anything that will strengthen the bonds betwfefen the diffei'ent countrifes of the Empire, and will opposfe any trends which seem to us tb weaken those bbhds. I believe the spirit of patriotism which -ahihiates the Returned Services' Associatibh— that same Spirit which has given the men of Anzac. and their successors, imperishablfe glory — iS Sbbiething we should feultivate throughout our national life." "May I, as a final Wbi'd, ex'press my warm personal appreciation of the many messages of congratulation recei'ved from fbriner bonhafiesy It was particularly gratifying to receive telegrams ffom former merhbers of the Units with WM'ch 1 'was associated ih thfe Fii'st Wbrld War. Such messagfes pro've again the endui'ihg.bond that "exists betwfeen -exservicemeh;"