AUSTRALIAN FINANCE

Hokitika Guardian, 3 July 1930, Page 7

AUSTRALIAN FINANCE

SIR T. HENLEY’S VIEWS.

UNWISE BORROWING BLAMED

AUCKLAND, June 30,

A strong condemnation of political interference in industry, to which he largely attributed Australia’s financial depression, was expressed by Sir Thomas Henley, a member off the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, on his arrival by the Aorangi from Sydney. “The present acute crisis is mostly a result of unreasonable borrowing and wild-cat spending ifor political rather than for sane development purposes,” he said. Separate political entities have intruded themselves into the body politic for the one purpose of exploitatibn, filching from the public exchequer in an indirect way what they could uot hope to get in above-board way.”

Sir Thomas, who was Minister for Public Works and Railways in the Fuller Government in 1922, is on his way to Honolulu to spend a holiday. He is a supporter of the Nationalist Party, and a consistent critic of Labour politics.

“Australia, ahd more particularly New South Wales, has been carrying the waste of war into the public departments and private life,** declaren Sir Thomas. “We have been spending before we earned, and spending more than we earned. We have a huge public service, nearly all drawing 100 per cent, more than before the war. The evil of unreasonable borrowing and spending has been supplemented By the Government meddling in direct trading and .by the foolish regulation of every kind of - production until today we cannot grow or manufacture anything of importance and export it at a profit; yet we have to provide £30,000,000 a year for interest. An Australian economist, Mr J. B. Brigden, had stated that Australia an unemployed army as large as the whole of the Australian Expeditionary Force. Instead of making productiop possible by* removing leg-iron, restrictions that vast army was being pauperised against its will by wholesale charity. The worst example was the muddle in the coal industry. (

“One of the worst signs of our industrial decadence is the frequent'ano fully subscribed Government loans' floated a bigger interest than industry can pay,” said Sir Thomas/ “hence instead of the available money going into industry, spendthrift Governments are encouraging unemployment by practically forced loans absorbing capital that would otherwise he used in profitable industry: Uiilihe New Zealand, we have seveii Competing Parliaments that think more of Votes than of true industrial progress. Doles, endowments, high tariffs, and costly bonuses have been our ruin,,. “After we have suffered the repercussion consequent upon the financial and industrial collapse, we shall touch bottom and begin to rise, but not until the restrictions imposed under unnecessary awards are taken off the backs of industry. We are suffering a national disaster that calls for sacrifice, and that means work. Australia holds immense undeveloped potentialities which, economically exploited, would well maintain every person capable of working and pay off ‘•he whole of the public debt in a few years. This is not being done because Industry is bound hand and foot. We have bad crises before any have survived them. It is a bigger task this time.

“The economic crisis in Australia 40 years ago was caused by gambling in innd values. It ruined some and enriched others, and it was more personal than national. The 1930 crisis has been caused by unsound inflation of rural and manufacturing industries. b v the fact that labour is controlled by class-conscious Arbitration Courts, which have replaced payment by results, and bv the public spending of ° > to earn £l. Both Federal and <?tnte Parliaments are directtv respon'•:b!e for the inflation and the pass-it-on policy.”

Sir Tohmns said he did not believe Optimistic Club started bv some Australians to cloud the facts, “TJ ie greatest enemv in Australia is sloppv, indolent 'think'ng associated v’t.h personal greed mwl fear to speak the truth as we see it,” he declared.