WELLINGTON TOPICS

Hokitika Guardian, 17 September 1930, Page 3

WELLINGTON TOPICS

STATE FINANCES

A SATISFACTORY RESULT

(Special Correspondent A

1 WELLINGTON, September 15

It was the privilege Of the Hen. E. A. Ransom, acting-Piime Minister during the absence-of the Hon. G. \V. Forbes, to, announce at the annual meeting of the Commercial Travellers and Warehousemen’s Association on Friday evening that Sir Otto Neimeyer and his companion Professor Gregery, two high authorities attached to the Bank of England, had informed the Government that its finances were in a satisfactory condition. Sir Otto Neimeyer, who is making only a hurried visit to the Dominion at the special request of the Government will not furnish his full report until his return to London, when he probably will make; useful suggestions to the New Zealand Treasury; but meanwhile the Dominion lias the satisfaction of knowing that its finances have been properly presented to the public. Of course both the present Government and the previous Government may be congratulated upon’this satisfactory state of affairs, and for the present Parliament,at, any rate, haggling over trivial Treasury differences should cense. STATE TRADING. ■ The members of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce are to be congrnDilated Upon the candour and the emphasis with which they, protested at tin ir annual meeting against the State's persistent trading in all manner of enterprises. Mr C. If. Smith urged very strongly and very logically that when the State entered into trading enterprises it should pay rates and ta es as other traders do and bear other responsibilities borne by them. Mr D. Seymour, the president of the Cb: mber, reminded members that the Ass? dated Chambers of Commerce had beei hammering upon this subject for a long time, but sill they could get from the Government were promises which were postponed from one session to another until business men had begun to des]fair of ever obtaining justice. It is quite true that Mr Massey, Air Coates •and Sir Joseph Ward all in turn promised relief from this flagrant, injustice, but not one of them bought bis promises to fruition. Now Mr I* orbes is away at the Imperial Conferen ;e and justice is held up again. ■ ; • IN PRACTISE. It is not that private traders would object to the State going into business on equitable terms with its rivals. On the contrary, they would he quil a content that the State‘-should run iis own railways; that it should mom

Post and Telegraph services, ard, indeed, that it should enter upon any other-’enterprise, so long as it paid the same rates and taxes, acfcepti d tlie same levies and responsibility: , and assumed the same obligations in other respects. That would be a perfectly fair and reasonable arrangement which would place the State and the private enterprise on this equitable basis proved to lie the better of the two competitors, then the whole community would have reason to rejoice. A better service would have been secured at a lower cost. But when State enterprise has entered into competition with private enterprise not in a single instance has it proved the better of the two. Even the State Railways are being overwhelmed by the private vehicles. THE PRIME MINISTER The Hon. G. W. Forbes, though lio reached premiership (when over sixty years of age, seems to have made a distinct impression in his first encounter with, people of his own ken over .seas. The “Vancouver Sun” having interviewed him as he first set toot on Canadian soil .summed him up in appropriate terms. “He looks like a fighter”’ it 5 Said editorially, “and acts like one, with all the poise and self possession of a European diplomat.” In a further interview' Mr Forbes told his interrogator that he had an engagement with the Canadian Government with the object of formulating a new trade agreement which would he furthered during the Imperial Conference. The people of New Zealand wanted trade with Canada and that was one of the things he wished if possible to secure for them. Mr Forbes will be quite a new specimen of New Zealand leadership at Home, but no one who makes his intimate acquaintance will doubt his courage, his candour and his national devotion.