ISSUES BEFORE THE ELECTORS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 146, 8 July 1937, Page 7

ISSUES BEFORE THE ELECTORS

•PresS ASSociStion »

Mimsfcerial Dictatoyship in . New Zealand C0L. HARGEST'S VIEW

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WELLINGTON, Thig Day. A cliarge tHat the Govetnment was guUty of flnancial recklessne^.s and of class prejudice in its legisla' tioa 'was made by Colonel J. Ilargest, M.P. for Awarua, in an address to supporters of the National Party at Lower Sutt last fligfat. "If the Labonr Pafty ^wins fiekt olfeotion V?6 'will knoW that the country is heading toward revoiutionary Socialism, ' ' he Said. "If it is defeated, we will know that New" Zealand stands for the restoxation of the people's freedoln and . rights. 'Ihe isshe hefore the country is ciCarly defihed as it never has been heforei" The mayof of LOiver Sutt# Mr J. W. AndreWfi, presided over the meeting. Colonel Hargest reviewed the achievements of the National Government^ and referred to the reasons why it was defeated at the poils. Se was quite open to admit, he said, that the National Govenmlent weiit too far, perhaps, but it did not know that the slump was gonfg to eass Up and disappear in 1935» Whatever the previous Governmeiit didj the economies it was forced to am.po.je were spread across the whole community and not upon any particular section. The Labour Party to-d.ay was .roaping the beneiit of .the sound administration of its ptedecessbrs in odice. 'fh© tlOil-fulfilffient of the eiection ptomises of the Labouf Party was commented tlpon by Colonel Hargest, who said that taxation had jumped by fouv and a half millions. New Zealana was the most heavily taxed country in the world, Had the Governmeiit been honest in its professed desire to .reduce the burden it could- have dona so sonie- time ago. Instead, it had 1 lumped on an 5xtra load. People with n.edium incomes had been badly hit. Kept in IdienesB

"A gigantic hoax" was the descriptior, applled to the guarauteed prices scheme. Labour members, he said, had claimed that itheil they took charge of ihe Treasury benches there were 57.000 uEeuipIoyed in New Zealand. That tigura was ineol-reet. The Nationai Governmeiit had reduccd the numbcr from ' 5,000 to 50,000, and that was just ubout where it stood to-day. "I have no hesitation in saying,'' f.aid Colonel Hargest. "that the Sodialist Government in this country is running tfue to forw «— the same foxm Eh.jwii by overy other Socialist Government Which has been m office since ibo .^ar, ..The Govefnment here has eet. ijp a class of Ministerial dictatorship/the like of which the British EmpiVe has never experienced before. We are being governed by a crowd who are guilty of iinancial recklessness. » ' Purchase of Machinery lf the misaion Of the- Minister of hlarketing abnoad had not been successI'uJ, what was the reason? Mr Nash had gone to England iiiainly for the purpose cJ making trade agreements i'a\ourabl'e to the l/omiiiion, and he had taiJed Why? Mr Nash would furnish lus OWn explanation, but the reason un-d-Oubtedly was the unsympathotle trteatmont was were giving some of Groat Britain's industries. Wliile we weie giving lip service to the Mothcrlaml, an increasing amount of money was going elsowhcro, Colonel Hargest said he 'wbuld give as an instance tlio hcavy purchase of American machinery .ut-ed for rpad-making purposes by one of the great Government dopartments— the^ Public. Works Department, Everywhere one went one buw new mdehines on Public Works jobs — nearly all Ar 'can, He had drawn atten* tion tc it before, and the Minister of Public Works had roplied On April 22 in a long Btatement which showed that from January 1, 1936, his department had purchased machinery to tlie value of £354,871 from Britain and £231,152 from America. The speaker invited the Minister to furnish a statement of the purchases by items so that the public would know the types of machinqs wliicli Wero beillg bought and the coun* tfy Of origin. fe invited the Minister to explain also the necessity of giving prefereuce by logislative action to certain makes of American machinery and certain makes only. In a Gazetto published on April 1 last authority was given for the importation of eerfain types of machinery of American origin at Ihe British preferential rate, whieh moant a reduetion of 25 per cent in duoy. All these good# were classifled undcr tariff item 352, which allowed Brilish goods in frce and American goods in uuder the gcneral tariif raio oi' 25 per cent. Tli0 purpuso of tlio Gazette notiee was to lowor tho duty on tho makes Uowu to the freo rate, Why? Colonel Hargest said that tho agencios ot tho makes concornod Wero largcly if not exclusively hoid by one (irtr. in New Zealand, Wliy should oue lirm havo that advantago? Would the iVlmitLef say that the items gazotteri wero supenor to all other American ni'ikos— -if so, why wero other makes eompetuig tjuccossfuily- in America? But tbcre wiis another point to be considerod — ovon if in th0 past New Zealand manufacturers had not boeu able to comjmte successfuiJy, tho Gazette aotice comploteiy -put them out of the running — the 23 por cent addod adVautage giveu to the numoj makes wonld make tko'lotal industries give up trviug. The losa of rcvenue rehuJling truili the i'ree eulry of those goods bad to bo rnudo up by ihe New Zealand laapaycr, wlao was thus uiaking a prorfoni to American Lidustry and to the imui in tho Btroet it looked as though ihe firm fortiiuiite onougb to hold tho agoncies was in an uiifairfy sthong no«ituni. : Meat Agreement Leaiitig with- tile increase m tho rniu len hnd lam b quota Colonel tlargesl c-au. that while ho did not wish to d_tiact from any of M,r Nasli's achievements. he feJt bound to pomt out that the agreement gave New Zealand-' uo rcal beneiit whatever. The new quota

\yas tor tlie calemlnr yeur l9:G only, and it iricreased the amount allowed tt> be landed iu the United Kingdotn bv 110,000 cwt. — t'rom 3,900,000 to 4/ino000— but New Zealand worilfl not «npply anytliing like tlie fornier amount even— in fact, it was going to he short ty -300,000 -cwt. Kxports of nnitlon and lamb from tlio Domiuion this yeur would barely' reach 3.000.000 cwt.; tliey wero 3,330,000 cwt. in 193(5 und 3,032,920 cwt. in 1935.