A WARNING.

Hokitika Guardian, 31 August 1926, Page 1

A WARNING.

OVER-MUCH BORROWING. SIR JOSEPH WARD APPR EM ENSIYE. WELLINGTON, August 28. . It has been the habit of Sir Joseph Wartl to sound a note of caution with regard to borrowing whenever the opportunity has presented itself during the session, and when he rose to speak on the Public Works Estimates lie did not depart from his policy. He declared that the rate at which we were borrowing was altogether too last. It was dangerous. This year the sum ol £7,037,000 was being asked for in authorisations by the Public W orks Department. Yet no member of the House supposed that that sum would be spent. All could look back and refer to Item after item in past years that bad been set down without a shilling having been spent. He was intenselv interested—-be would not say amused—when be bad beard members that-afternoon calling the attention of the Minister of Public Works to the needs of their district with regard to railways.

“ Tt is going to take fifty years to get the requisite expenditure.” declared Sir Joseph. “That is, if we go on at the rate of recent years.” What was the use of going on with the policy of borrowing money, and tolling the world that we could dispense with a sinking fund? It was downright farcicial. He knew very well that New Zealand could not stop its necessary works but the rate at which we were going was too swift.

Sir Joseph said he hail a suggestion to make with regard to railways. Of course, lie knew before he made it that it. would he scouted, hiit he could not see why we should not complete the whole of our railways programme within three years, instead of doing if hv instalments. If it were (lone all at once the expenditure would he out of the way for ever, and we could get on with other works. The proposed railway extensions would cost. say. £18,000,000. He thought that if the Government were to call for tenders, and offered bonds in return, on the same principle as bonds were given for money obtained for purchase of land, a tender would he received lor every section of railways advertised. He .thought this scheme would be endorsed by any financial authority. It would he much more practical than the present policy of adding a mile or two here and another ten miles there. At

our present rate of progress in railway construction, every member of the House would be dead before the programme was completed. What would be the. use of making it possible for a member's grandchild fifty years hence to say. “ Aly grandfather started this railway? ” (Laughter.) Sir Joseph felt that the people ol the Old Country were not going to go on lending us money at the rate of £11.000,000 a year. What was the use of placing one’s hand over one’s heart and asserting that there was a surplus, and that a-sinking fund was not necessary, simply because money that was voted had not been expended? And all the time the country was becoming further indebted. Replying to this statement, the Hon AY. Xoswnrthy said he thought the scheme described by Sir Joseph AVard would make for a furnace blast pace. Witli regard to what the member for Invercargill had suggested about completing the railways, the Minister felt that it was not a good .scheme, fn any case, he did not know that the bonds would he accepted, and even il they were, in the last analysis it r\as adding to the burden of national debt. AH- \y. Parry (Auckland Central): What about inflation? The Minister of Agriculture agreed that there would probably he nidation, too. He admitted quite freely that the Government had been compelled to borrow a lot of money, but he did not see how any other scheme than the present one would prove beneficial. “After all.” continued Air Noswortliy. “ the only way to get along is by solid work, and hard thrift. That, of course, applies to individuals, too. It is the only way, and it is a good thing that it is so. Disaster overtakes people who live right up to their incomes, without thought ol the rainy day, and in the future there may he trouble again, if prices do not keep ”P”