WELLINGTON TOPICS

Hokitika Guardian, 1 February 1932, Page 3

WELLINGTON TOPICS

EONOMY COMM ISCION. PRUNING THE BUDGET. (Special Correspondent). WELLINGTON, Jan. 29. The constitution of the special Commission the Government has set up to review the public expenditure' and to suggest such economies as may'fig, effected is meeting general approval iii business and financial circles. The need for such investigation by cap--11 Die autuorities is beyond all possible doubt. Successive Ministers from tiiile to tune have emphasised the need tof economy in the various departments of State; but, with very tew exceptions, they have made title progress 1 towards the realisation 01 their good intentions. Dotli Air Forbes, the pres- ; ent Prime Minister, and Air Downie Stewart, Ills successor a£ the" Treasury have made some tangible.,progress towards the desired end, but they have done wisely in see King the assistance of a body of business men,’untrammelled by party politics, to point r the way towards a thorough overnji/ul gf the finances of the country. The. final decisions still will remain with the politicians, but it is to be hoped they will be slmped on tbe sound recommendations of the" members of the Commission. . LABOUR REPRESENTATION. It would have been well had a sane Labourite—other, of course," than-a member of Parliament—been added to this if only as .a listener to the doctrines and proposals propounded b.v the, other . members. Political Labour, speaking generally, j has such a perverted notion of the aims and objects qf .successful business men that it will attach the smallest possible credence to the report of the Commission; Had Mr W. Nash, the Labour member for Hutt, who secured the - highest poll (9,187 votes)' at the recent election, been admitted to this coclave, even tongue tied, he would have carried to the public an account, of the proceedings which -would have borne, neither malice nor inaccuracy...'That, however; is an arrangement which is not possible just now, and neither the members-of the Commission nor Air Nash will wish it were otherwise. For the time being it is sufficient that the Government lias referred the problems of the ■country’s finance to a commission well qualified? to report to those in authority upon the whole position.

TRIBUTE TO LABOUR LEADER The “Evening Post” takes the opportunity, .afforded by the disgraue.fill Labour demonstration in thei.Win- , ter Show Building to pay a well .deserved tribute to Mr Peter Fraser, the Labour member " lor Wellingtbh 1 Central. “The strike promoters - who shouted down last night’s •it says, “refused reasoned discussion; among--jneu on whom they were call-’ ing. to strike. They even- -' shouted down Air Fraser, who courageously attempted to show them" how futile their action would be.'-Mr Fraser js‘ with the men in any movement to improve their conditions if that movement has a prospect of succeeding.’ v, No one would accuse him of opposing %' strike through faint-heartedness. It'"‘'heeds much more courage to take the opposite course, and when Mr ' Fraser opposes the strike action the Workers may be assured he is trying to save them from harming themselves..” This was not the first occasion upon’ which Mr Fraser —among the most capable of tbe Labour Leaders lias encountered such treatment. Labour loose, with Communist misguidance, is by' ! no means uncommon. MORE DEMONSTRATING. On the following afternoon a little group of wild looking men, anxious, it would seem, to play the-’ part of the real Communist, gathered at Petone six or seven miles out of Wellington, to entertain a group of two or three hundred idle workers'with stories of the good things that would 'come tneir way if they stood out for shorter hours '■ and bigger, wages. “This is going to lead to a national st'rikb” one of the “Communists?’ announced and he wanted to know why Mr W. Nash and Mr PoteC'-Fraker 'were not helping him and liis- = companions towards that end. Meanwhile- the mein, her for Hutt and the member for Welington Central were-demoUstrating to thejr constituents'-"the"? utility and the crime of instigatoin ill informed people to throw away the - hall loaf that was a ratable to .them, lor the certainty of a worse fate. Meanwhile much of the work intended for the succour of flic out-of-work men is being held up by the demand for statutory wages and each day the discomfort of women and children is accumulating;