PRESSURE AGAINST STABILIZATION

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 230, 26 June 1944, Page 4

PRESSURE AGAINST STABILIZATION

Opposition Denial MR. HOLLAND REPLIES TO MR. DONNELLY (By Telegraph.— Press Association.) CUItRISTCHURCH, June 25. A declaration that he had not received a single representation from either inside or outside the National Party or the Opposition to cancel the stabilization regulations or to abandon the principle of stabilization was made by the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Holland, replying to statements made by Mr. A. T. Donnelly, chairman of the Bank of New Zealand, in his address on Friday to tile annual meeting of shareholders. “I think it can properly be said that any statement coming from Mr. Donnelly carries with it more than a'n ordinary amount of weight, specially on the question of stabilization, seeing that he was chairman of the economic stabilization conference which made the original recommendations to the Government.” said Mr. Holland. “Mr. Donnelly in his address to the bank’s shareholders quite properly availed himself of the opportunity to discuss financial policy and stabilization in practice, but in order to escape the charge of criticizing the Government Mr. Donnelly in his comments launches an unprovoked and unfair attack on the Opposition, which I cannot allow to pass unchallenged.” .Mr. Donnelly had staled that people in positions of responsibility, both Government and Opposition, had urged, and were urging, cancellation of the regulations and abandonment of the principle of stabilization. Mr. Holland said he thought he could claim to know better what was the attitude of the Opposition and what was going on inside the widespread National Party organization. In his endeavours to increase production he had visited 64 different places from Dunedin iu the south to Kaitaia in the north, and he had met branches of the National Party everywhere. “I ean say definitely and positively that not one nerson has made the slightest suggestion to me that the regulations should be cancelled or the principle of stabilization abandoned, he said. “What we do say is that the principle of stabilization should be fairly applied. and not got round by various subterfuges and devices. We say that it is unfair to stabilize some people’s income at pre-war level or a little more, while they have to meet unstabilized costs in 1944. This applied to many workers on low-wage scales and to persons on lower fixed incomes who have been hard hit by rising costs notwithstanding .stabib ization.’’ If the farmers were to be attacked for demanding justice, then it should be done out in the open and not by implying that they were Opposition pressure groups, said Mr. Holland.