HON. W.F. MASSEY

Hokitika Guardian, 14 November 1919, Page 4

HON. W.F. MASSEY

THE REFORM POLICY.

l.rEft PRESS ASSOCIATION.— COPYRIUUT. ) - WAIUKU, November 13.' Mr Massey addressed a meeting of his constituents here to-night. He was accorded a good hearing and there was a good attendance. 'Explaining that it was the opening of his campaign, tli e Premier described the work he had done in connection with the war, afd the Peace Treaty. He claimed that his absences from the Dominion were justified. He said it was impossible to say how much the Dominions share of reparation from Germany would be, but there would be some share of the first payment of one thousand millions to be made next year. He said that the taking over of Samoa, had been the duty of the Dominion. Their share of Nauru Island would mean millions to the land producers of the country. It had been necessary to take over Samoa where Germany left off. Hence indentured labour was necessary for the present He hoped that in the future it would be possible to carry on with free labour. , ~ „ Mr Massey said that when the .[National Government, broke up_, he was not surprised, and was not disappointed. His party had suggested the session before last that there should be a fusion of the parties, but the other side had rejected this. Consequently when the disruption of the National Government came, he reconstructed his programme and carried on. He had to acknowledge the assistance of the other side in putting through much of the legislation of the past session. He 'criticised the action- of the opposition regarding the soldiers gratuity, the railway wages and the proposals made by them to take the Post Office funds, for housing. Mr Massey said this was really putting the public affairs of the country up to auction. Mr Massey also criticised Sir Joseph Ward’s nationalisation proposals, which (he said, werte “nationalisation gone mad.” Dealing with taxation, lie said, the system needed revision, hut there had been no possibility of dealing with it during the past session. In taxation this country had departed from the principle that every man in the community should contribute to taxation in proportion to his ability to pay. ■ This was especially so in connection with the taxes on land. By the present system a man was very often taxed on the moneys he owed, and the evil was accentuated in districts where land was high priced. The graduated land tax was intended to burst up largo estates, but now, with the increased values of land, it applied to some comparatively small farmers, who- were heavily mortgaged. A remedy should be found for this. Land taxes consisted of ordinary land tax, graduated land tax, and income tax, which the farmer paid. More should bo done with regard to exempting married men with families, from the income tax. The principle was already affirmed, but the exemption was of very little value. There had been an attempt to insist that the accumulated surpluses should be used for sinking funds, but it bad been decided to use them- for soldier settlement. By this moans the necessity for either increasing taxation or raising another loan v'as obviated. There would be no more loans free of income tfflx. There would be no more compulsory.

In regard to the cost of living, tho believed that inflation of tho currency was largely responsible for this everywhere. Ho hoped 'this would disappear without any depression. He said that aliuoh had been done here to keep

prices down, instancing butter. He said that th e payment of money to the butter equalisation fund for the producers had been made to save producers from being taxed. Fresh energy must be infused into development work. There had been too much of the pick and shovel methods in the past, and new methods must he devised. In regard to railways, roads, and hydroelectric power, vigorous hydro-electric power, vigorous development would be th e main feature of the Government’s programme. Mr Massey was accorded a vote of thanks and renewed confidence.