UNITED PARTY

Hokitika Guardian, 17 October 1928, Page 2

UNITED PARTY

POLICY OUTLINED

BY SIR JOSEPH WARD

(By Telegraph—Press Association;

AUCKLAND, Oct. 16

“If the Party of Which i am the h ad is roUu nod at the coming electi ui,' .1 will undertake to bring into this ji .in try with in twelve mouths, seventy millions sterling !”

I hat sentence was the keynote ot the si ceeli de.ivered at the Auckland Town h dl to-night by Sir Joseph Ward, in ej:iinciatiiig for the first time the poli v of the United Party .

Sir Joseph said that oi this seventy Mi llions, sixty millions would he Foi advances to the workers and settlers. ,ai d ten millions tor the completing of tie railway system.

Sir Joseph Ward was accorded a most o: tlnisiastie reception by - a large ei.nvd. The doors had to he dosed KMg before the time of the meeting, ai d hundreds ol people vainly clamoured at the locked doors, seeking lor adit ission. At the end, the great audience rose a d cheered and sang “For He’s a J llv Good Fellow !” Sir .Joseph Ward’s speech occupied an hour and ten minutes in delivery.

STILL A LIBERAL

Sir Joseph begun by referring to his own position. He had, since 1887 stood as a. Liberal. He had been returned at the last -General Election under that title and lie had been unable to see his wav to adopt the name of “Nationalist, ’ taken by those formerly associated with him. However, when hwas unanimously requested by the lr;cent United Party Conference to accept its leadership, lie came to the conclusion that, if lie could assist the c untry at this time by accepting, he s 1 ould do so. He had not been a ireinher of that Conference, and lie had not interfered in its proceedings in any way. The Party, lie said, comprised former- members of all of the N.Z. Parties. There was no need for any to change in their political creed, s long as they-conformed to the Party’s purpose, which was to stand .in the general interest of the whole people. Fe was still a Liberal as were all the oilier members, no matter what their former allegiance.

A REPLY TO PREMIER, The Prime Minister,-said Sir Joseph had recently made the statement thm there were only two political part join the country—Reform and Labour. Mr Coates’ intention was to divert attention from the United Party. However, the Nationalists and the Liberals ifr 1925,’ had contested 50 seats, and had polled 143,291 votes, to the Govern ment’s 315,688- votes, and Labour’; 18,3,201 votes. There had been a large number of Liberal votes in electorates where no Liberal candidate was put up.

TIME FOR A CHANGE. “The Reform Party has had some 17 years of office.” declared Sir Joseph, “and, in the opinion of many the time is ripe for a change. However I am willing to trust the people.”

GREAT RISE OF PUBLIC DEBT'

The net public debt*, under Reform, lie said, had risen Imm £20.1,060,00P n, .1.20, to £251,000,0,;0 to-day. in those e.ghl years, the debt .burden had i een iu ivased by £BO per head ol the Dominion puptilat.on. f

HR FA I )-\Y INNER S’ BU R I )EN S

B.GGER

The bread-winners’ taxation, said Sii J<„->e,.h, had risen from £.11,835,(1)9 in to £.1.2,689,1KK) t .-day. The bread- . i.iiieis .a New Zealand, who number•d a lit 1,',60 had to-pay nearly £23 a bead, pins £lO It is on account id' tin rates to local bodies, wlm-ii aggregated £5,880,000 yearly.

■'ll- i> no use for my opponents t< sa f all is well. ’ declared Sir Joeeph Ward. .“All is not well!” (Applause; Ti e country had not got. enough lor it-' self by millions of puuiids-—more million.s than it ever had in 'Now Zealand at one time before. If his l’art; v,-i s returned, he would undertake t I ring into the country, within t'c'.vi

months, .seventy million sterling. (Loud a p ohm so) . lie would add not one sx pence to the taxation. To allow that to lx- done, the man on the land and the worker who- used the money w mb be required to pay the whole of tin interest upon it. He would lend rnuiie; to them at four* and three-qar rim per cent, with one per cent, sinking fund, wit'll the security the best in tin world —the security of the country. i RAILWAY-' COMPLETION.

Of this seventy millions, he won! ra'se ten millions , for the conipletioi without any delay— -within three or four years.'at the outside--of the whole of the present uncompleted railways. That policy applied to all of the rail ways of any length, such as the Taranaki to Auckland line, the East Com si line, the Nelson and West Coast line, and others. “I want,'”, he said, “to see introduced the railway, system that luviiuadie .Canada, America and South Africa. Such a scheme would give work for the unemployed.

PLENTY OF MONEY There were four hundred millionof fresh money in London looking io-i investment every year, and where couf belter security he found than in New Zealand f ” He proposed -to provide sixty millions to ' lend t settlers' and workers. “Some of my opponents ask: ‘Can i' he done?’ My answei* is >t!uit when 1 ini rod need the State .Advances system. anil-utile State Workers’ system, they declared that -weY co-uld not gel the money; that if wb got it we could not lend .it; that if -we lent it wf would not get it back: iWe lent fort; millions sterling,rand 'the losses were infinitesimal.’’ ' ' U, a

Sir Joseph Ward-also advocated tourist development in. New Zealand to r far greater extent than the trnffir existing at present..

SETTLEMENT AND LAND

AGGREGATION

The country, lie .said, now had to have regard for smaller land settlement. so-, as to, give the people o' smaller means an opportunity to main homes and a living for themselves. Suol i scheme of development would brin< 3 )0,000 or 400,000 more people to tin

country within eight years; that was a third more people to share its burdens. So long as people could be reasonably absorbed in town and country, new set tier's* should be welcomed.

“W’c have still got to prevent the iggregati.ou of land,” he declared,

‘‘and X give you the assurance that il we get the opportunity, we will, if u, cess-ary, nut the compulsory proviii us into operation. .1. stand for (I) Closer settlement—a more literal cond tion and more rigid prevention or aggregation of the lands that arc suitable for sub-division.

(2) Assistance in Crown land .settlement where the nature of the hind renders it: desirable, particularly in the deteriorated areas.

p'S) A reading policy to open up settlement, without placing a heavy raring burden on land. (4) The remission of rent or inleiesl where necessary.

(5) .Metre export valuation of the laud on a productive.basis.

Other■ points of policy advocated by Sir. Joseph Ward were: Free compulsory and secular system of education. Electoral reform by the introduction of preferential voting. Share with the Motherland in the cost of Empire defence. The removal of the shackles hampering trade.

”1 have been in the public life o' this country since 1888” said Sir Joseph in closing. “I lay claim to no superiority. The only claim 1 make is that I have always tried to do my best, and I have tried never to treat a man out of the House unfairly over legislation and administration.” Same said that he was too old. That was hypocritical nonsense. TJie next time lie came back to Auckland, ho would be at the head of the Government. (Loud applause). A vote of thanks and confidence was carried enthusiastically.