DR. POMARE AND LABOUR MEMBERS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 2602, 5 July 1923, Page 2

DR. POMARE AND LABOUR MEMBERS.

The Hon. Sir Maui Pomare (Minister of Health) in his speech in the Address-in-Replv debate in the House of Representatives this week aroused the ire of the Labour members. In the course of his remarks he said: “The trouble, I consider is that there has been too much dependence on the Government for everything. If the people did a little bit more for themselves instead of depending on the Government for every twopenny-ha’penny thing, we would get on much better in this country. I am absolutely sick and tired of listening to this housing question. It is nauseating. When I look down on some of those hon. gentlemen whose parents 1 came out to this country in the pioneering days I know that they were satisfied to live in a slab whare without any assistance from the Government or anyone else. The tendency now is for everyone to want assistance from the State in the way of a house. Then he is not satisfied with (he paper. If' lie is satisfied with the paper, he is not satisfied with something else. They want pampering in every direct ion. I never heard a single gentleman from the Labour benches during the course of the debate advocate thrift. I never heard an hon. gentleman say that when a boy starts work at 17 lie should save something so that when he is 25 lie will be able to get a house. I have never heard that. They don’t believe in it. They want the Government to do everything.” The Minister said that if young men spent less money on cigarettes and picture shows they would have enough money at 25 to he able to buy a house.

Mr W. E. Parry (Auckland Central) “That is inspiring.” Mr 11. T. Armstrong (Christchurch East) : “Practise it.” The Minister: “I have practised it.”

Mr A. L. Montcith (Wellington East) : Can you do it on £3 16s Id?

The Minister: “It is a man’s own fault if he is not earning more. Why does he not save a little and get a house? The Socialist idea is to grab the other fellows’ savings and spread it among the whole lot.” The Minister, discussing the question of (lie Labour Party’s attitude on selfdetermination in relation to subject races of the British Empire, asked what would happen if this principle were carried out in its entirety. Supposing we had self-determina-tion for the Maoris, where would Mr Holland go? He did not know whether he would go to Australia or whether Australia would have him, because they got rid of him before.”

Mr 11. E. Holland (Buller) said that it would he better if the House did not have such an exhibition as tlie one which they had just had from a Minister of the Crown. It was not a good thing for the country, and the Minister’s speech was the worst advertisement that New Zealand had ever had, a sorry exhibition. No Minister should make an attack on his opponents with gross insults. The Minister had a taunt for everybody who was not born in this country, and he forgot that the Prime Minister was not. a native of New Zealand. His utterance was a reflection on the Prime Minister, and was disloyal to him. He hoped that for the sake of the reputation of the House the Minister would restrain himself in the future, and if he could' not set an example to the whole of the House, he might try to set an example to those on the Government benches.”