“No More Borrowing"

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20007, 4 August 1939, Page 9

“No More Borrowing"

Sir, —One of the great planks of the Labour platform in 1935 was “no more borrowing.” In the Budget the other night Ministers had to admit that they had borrowed £46,000,000 during the last four years, which is £11,500,000 a year. This is twice the average rate which previous Governments borrowed at. Now what assets have we for these £46,000,000? We know that much of the old borrowings are still represented by assets—railways, electric undertakings, State advances loans. But how much of the £46,000,000 spent in the last four years will be reproductive? Much of it has gone in waste like Scheme 13 where men do only four hours or so actual work a day rounding off corners and so on which will never bring a penny of return into the country. The Budget tolls us that £700,000 extra interest has to be paid this year on borrowings of last year. Who finds this money? Big businesses can usually pass it on, and in the end most of it will be found to be borne by the farmer and worker, whose children will still have to go on paying this interest long after he himself has gone. FARMER.