FREEDOM OF PRESS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 114, 31 May 1937, Page 4

FREEDOM OF PRESS

-Press Aflsociatiop 1

No Labour Interfereme HON. P. FRASER'S ASSURANCE

»By TelegrAph

• • Liast XNigat. A gregt deal had been made abont tke Labour Gdvernment 's igtention to curtail the freedem of jthe Press of ' tfew Zealand by a'censorskip, said the acting-Priine Minister, the Hon. P. Fraser, at Hawera. This was quite incorrect, as the Government had never ponsidered such a step. Tho opinion that such a step nught be takeg gpdoubtedly had epread. fpom two injudieious attacks ou tke Press of the Domiuions—one Qver the ftii' by Mr. C. G. Scrimgeour, aud the othei' in the Labour party 's weekly, tho Btandard. He did not rnifik the b?oadc.a.st a,ttacjk phould have been, made, and' ho had paade if his bgsiness.'to inquiro into the article in the Btandard. 'i'his. he stressed, was the opinion af one man, and a'man not particularly in tho Labour movernent at that. It was not the considered opinion of either tlip Government or th© Labour party. Mr. Fraser said that at the next election the whole of the Press of New Zealand would be allied against the Labour Government. ,'It was all very well to claim that the Press gave the Government ' members plenty of space. They did, particularly if in an un. guaTded moment a member of the Government made a remark that could be misconstrued. It then appeared in headlines in every daily in the coun*. try.