LABOUR LEADER

Evening Post, Volume CXVII, Issue 71, 24 March 1934, Page 14

LABOUR LEADER

MR. SAVAGE'S TOUR

SOUTHLAND'S RESOURCES

(By felesrapu.—l'ress Association.) INVEKCARGILL, March 23\ The Leader of the Opposition (Mr. M. J. Savage), who has been making a tour of Southland, was entertained at luncheon today by the Invercargill Chamber of Commerce. He was welcomed by the president, Mr. C. B. Tapley, who referred to the Bluff-Melbourne service, and said that it was the hope of the chamber that the Melbourne Centenary celebrations would result in the reinstatement of the service.

"We want a tourist service here," said Mr. Tapley. '• We have no outlet. This is practically the dead end of New Zealand. We are not asking for*something for nothing; we have much to offer, including the finest tourist resorts in the country." '

"I cannot understand why the service should have been stopped,?' said Mr. Savage, after acknowledging the president's welcome. "Of course, a vessel sank, but I cannot think that that should be the end of things. I do not look on Southland as a dead end I, represent an Auckland constituency, but I do not look, at New Zealand through Auckland spectacles. At any rate, what affects Southland must affect New Zealand and Auckland with it. I toured your province in the last few days, and I realise its immense resources. Anything I can do to help New Zealand by linking Melbourne with Bluff will be done. I am not talking politics when I say that, but pure economics, because it is not economic to leave a province with such potentialities without any outlet. I promise you that 1 1 will support the connection of Melbourne with Bluff." ; OVERSEAS TRADE. Continuing, Mr. Savage said that whether wo liked it or not, New Zealand was in for some kind of curtailment so far as the export- of primary produce was concerned. Britain had vast interests in many parts of the world and some of her money was invested in countries who were in opposition to New Zealand in the export of primary produce. Britain had, for instance, £1,000,000,000 invested in South America, and could only draw interest on the products of the Latin republics. A certain outlet for New Zealand could, however, be obtained in New Zealand itself. So far as selling to the East was concerned, he did not approve of it. "If we sell to the East we do so at the expense of the West," he said. "For everything we sell to the East we must take something from the East, and usually it is something which we should be taking from Britain." By selling to the East, he contended, we should be cutting our main market from under our feet. Moreover, we should be linking ourselves with countries whose standard of living was low, a fact which must reflect upon the standard of living in New Zealand.

The objects of the Labour Party were, first, to develop New Zealand, and then to develop the British Commonwealth of Nations.

On the question of tariffs, ho said that when goods were being brought into New Zealand which must be brought in, there could be no argument in favour of a tariff. When, however, it was a question of protecting New Zealand industries there was every argument in favour of. a tariff. '