UNEMPLOYMENT BILL

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 191, 6 April 1932, Page 5

UNEMPLOYMENT BILL

("Fost" Special Commissioner)

debate commenced oppositio^ criticises the mea'sure "As" Mere HOTCH-PtfTCH MINISTER'S EXRLANATIQN

WELLINGTON, Tuesday. The second i;eading of the" "^nepaPlpyin^n| ^ill wa? com: menpe^ ip. the ^o|ise pf Representapves thjs afternpop apd signs* arp ppt wg-nting that tjiere wiil • he anothpr ^eiuge^bf talh befp^e the mggshre is finally passecj. ' Tb§ Labpur parfy is disatpppinfed wifh Ihe mpg,surp and- if vbicing ifs protesfs with emphasis. * *' Moving the second reading, the Rt. Hon. J. ' G. Coates, Minister-in-Charge of Unemployment, * said that |Ke coUntry was * under the ' definite dffficulty of financing enough money ;o keep* everybody ' employeli. Indded*, ;his cofild not be' dorie;* ahd* "the best ;hey could* hop'e for* in "many 4 cases wdiild be "fo* k'eep '' hody an'd' souYtogethe'r, that' was,'to' provid'e* food* a'h'd rali^ent. "They "Ha'd at* Ihe' sa'riie' tinid p avoi'd the""ddle"; 4thatl*was, giving somedne somethmg1 for 'nofHih^,' !btft |;hey wpu^d probably liave to distribi^te food.' " tn l'' ' 1 * 5 ' "« l Budget Problem The great problem was to square pne Budget accounts, bppaipse before that -\yas done, they could not do* yery much po ^elieve the p^pmployjnent situation. This ye^r ip yjas hbp possible to call on the Consolidate'd Fund as had been done in thp past and every effort had to * be made' to enable their" li'abilities to be'met .It was necessary, * therefore,* to" call on the empldyed 'to make>*a 'special effort arid to*' accep't iiew proposals.' A """ * 'Mr. " Coates saicl' tha't" the shilling in the ppund wag'e tax would "b'riiig ixi between"" *£3,000;'006 "anh * ^3',500',00'0 The tax was based on currenf l'ncpme an# nof on 'thaf of 'last year. It did not fo|low that hecause* threepence in the poundsyieIded a cerfain amourit , U s T! t*>. ' V'l -:ry, i' . ' >1 ,. last Xear, it would yiel(J the same this year because'faxahle inconies had fallpn. He*' confendect thal; if ' iVould be ipipossib|e fp'r" lncomes" po cafiiy the whole pf the* taxation' for unem- , i.ish- J.; t; nonoti Ti;'* m V"; ploymenp relief purposes. " Rep|yipg ;o a 'suggestion that ppi^ wage tax should tje im|)bse(p' on induspry, he said' this would mpan 13/4 in phe pound. 'Tjiaf wpurd' be '^fie quiclcesp way to Jmihg spagn'apion. T|ie result pf tjie seapch for industrips that could ahsprpt unemployed ha.4 npl Rgep encouraging and pointed to thp fact that local industries had reached saturapion point. •

Home for Man and Wife i r.-; tu 'X : -* .. ■: :• *•»» The small farming scheme would provide a' home' for a ihari and his family. The Government had only a c'erfain amount"of money at its disposal and that money' must be made to go as ' far *as possible.* There was not a great* amourit; "of ' "work '* waiting to be done in 'the to'wns ,an*d "th'ey must look' to the cotlritfy"arid" "h*e, believed that shofply they 'would Be able to draft out a large number of "men to the country "districfs." ' Only a peppercorn rental would be charged to th'ose settled on the land, Mr. Coates conpinued, and lease? of at least ten years would he granted, with the optiori of purchasing a |)%- ger se'ction. " Mr. Coates repudiated a suggestion that people were starving. He challeriged the Opposition to point to a country whicH "had" 'done 'more in the way of uneiriployment 'relief thari New Zealand.* 'The Unemployment Board was 'endeavouring to meet cases of special hard'ship. 'He' appealed for the hearty cb-bperdt'ion' oi the Oppositiori ahd* also of ' ail" sections of the community. ' Opposition Ignored Mr. W. L* Parry (Labour, Auckland 4Cerii;ralj comp^med^lhat sUggestions made |>y the 'Qpposipicjja ha.d':'pe:en" ig: jiorefi. ' ihe *" 13il|* ' w|s ' a hotc|i-pqteh which would get'nowhere. The pountry wanted' a bold ppjicy," but |he Gpyernment did jnot see^i to 'haye sumcierip visipjq. fo realise fhat tliefe |iad b'ppn no aftempt to assess the amounf of Crown land suitahle for settlemen|; and he .contended that there ivas enpjigh CroWn land to ahsprb tJiousand| of men. The* pfinciple of the^ presenjt legisjation seeriied fo be to maintain existing sec'urities' by rpeans of c|ieap labour'. When normal times returped, the unemployed would not receive any benefits from 'the ' sec'urities they had maintaijied during fhe slump. Mr. A. J. |tally(pr*thy (Gpvernment, ! Rden): Tjhere ^wiij bg a natipnarjiene- ! fit. ' I Mr Parry: At the spcrifice of f|i_e unemployed. He said the Gpverhment j had no right to move married men; into t|ie country without providing ! for their wives in fbe towns. * j Mr. J. A. Lee (Labour, Grey Lynn),1 said the unemployed' should be set to work making £20,000,000 worth of; goods which* were "hpt npjy ^eing'imported. it' was only a matter of arranging th'e currency system. ' The aim"of the Governmdnf1 ' shpul'd be' fo: maintain the purchasing power of fbe people*.