WELLINGTON TOPICS

Hokitika Guardian, 2 March 1931, Page 2

WELLINGTON TOPICS

CIVIL. SERVICE CUT. WHERE IT PINCHES. (Special Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, February 26. vjii the whole the members of the Civil Sexy ice here are contemplating the impeijding “salary cut” philosophically with the reflection that still they will be better off than are those unlucky folk out of work altogether. There is, however, a very general feeling among them that the “cut ’ should be imposed upon a sliding scale beginning, for instance, at 5 per cent, on salaries of £2OO a year and reaching, by appropriate gradiations, as much as 20 per cent, on salaries o\ er £IOOO a year. The difficulty confronting the Government in this respect is that nine-tenths of the salaries are on the lower scale and that the- sum required would not be obtained without leaning unduly upon the salaries between £250 and £4OO. Thousand pound salaries are not numerous on the Civil Service pay sheet and even the deduction of 20 per cent, from all of them would not help the Prime Minister very far on the way towards the million and a half goal to which he aspires.

back to business. The good news from Napior to-day Is that business is being renewed on all hands and that the Control Committee is urging refugees to make applications for occupation permits,: Mr Robert Semple ',who was in Hastings within twenty hours of the great castastroplie looking up liis paper this morning, declared that nine-tenths of the population of the-affected area never should have deserted the district. It was well and natural, he went on to say, that the women and children, as far as possible, should he - removed to places of safetv; but the men’s job was to stand by their , homes and their . responsibilities as far as possible. As it was, Mr Semple protested, the newspapers and the public advertised the disaster far and near to their utmost ability, anti set half the world wondering whether New Zealand was under the sea or stranded on some stray mountain top.. The member for Wellington East rejoices at the general return to sanity and is ready to assist the sufferers in any way he can.

THE CEREAL PROBLEM

The Right Hon. G. W. Forbes, a farmer and a wheat grower himself, is confronted by a very difficult problem in, which many side issues are involved. „.,,It was in an early stage of the war that the National Cabinet, conceived the idea of assuring the continuance of IkUtlie Dominion’s bread supply ' by' subdffsidiaing the wheat growers. Front this •--■-beginning the farmers managed to ob-"-r, tain one concession and another until wheat- growing became the best assure ed industry in the middle part of the 4- South Island. Now a slump has Imposed itself upon the country and the public is beginning to realise that for the last fourteen or fifteen years it has been paying more for bread and for other products from wheat than any other country in the world has paid. The Prime Minister has stated definitely that this state of affairs cannot be tolerated indefinitely, but so far he has not indicated how it is to be repaired.

THE RAILWAYS

It is now common knowledge that among the proposals to be submitted to Parliament at the approaching ..emergency session will be one for the “depolnicalization” of the railways—that is, the removal of the railways from the administration of a Minister of the Crown to the direct control of a hoard appointed by the Government. Whether the chairman of the board or the general manager will be the prime authority, and whether the proposed reform wil Ibe pushed through Parliament during the approaching session or held over for the ordinary session later, all are questions being discussed. It is expected of course, that the Labour Party will oppose the change over, and the proposal is of so much importance that Mr H. E. Holland might justify considerable delay, which Mr Forbes would not be inviting, anil a postponement until the regular session may be the outcome of a long debate m which all parties will be anxious to pqrtake.