ITALY'S NEW METHODS

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 425, 9 January 1933, Page 7

ITALY'S NEW METHODS

SHOULD WE FOLLOW SOUTHERN OPINION FAVOURS MORE VIGOROUS ACTION COALITION SHOUUD ACT Many times since the depression settled on Ne.w Zealand we have heard the opinion expressed that what we want in this country is a Mussolini. "What would Mussolini do?" was often asked. We have the reply, says the Southland News editorially. A eablegram received on Wednesday stated that Italy's budget would show ;a deficit of £48,000,000 for 1933-34. Is the Government planning* eeonomies No, it intends to spend more than for the current year on reproduetive works, amongst which are. montioned land reelamation, agricultural development and relief work for the unemployed. There is every reason to hope that in this Dominion conditions will not be stabilised at the present level; prices are certain to rise gradually, and a 50 per cent. improvement is probable in the next year or two. Development Justified This justifies a government in a policy of development that will settle tl^e land on sane lines and provide tho best communication with the ports and the local markets. The uncompromising de.flationists doomed the world to carry a bnrden of 30,000,000 unemployed. These people and their families have to be lcept by their respective countries and are producing nothing for the. £3,000,000,000 that must be spent annually I in sustaining them. Surely the most important thing is to get these baclc to work instead of turning more out to lceep them company. No policy of eeonomy designed to balance the budget will scvrve to do this. After all no country is lceeping faith in the strict meaning of the word and we are not going to assist recove.ry to any material extent by merely balaneing budgets. That is evidently Italy's belief and 'she evidently intends to keep her industries in a healthy state even if her credit suffers. The fact that a deficit is to be budgeted for shows that no extra taxation is conte.mplated and the experiment is worthy of a country which introduced the world to Fascism. It is sincerely to be hoped that the Coalition will evolve something of. the same kind to meet the erisis which is said to have arisen.

Vigour Called For If it acts truly to form it will further economise and further add to the volume of unemployment ; if it receives an eleventh-hour inspiration it may push forward the small farm scheme with a vigour that will save the country and cause the pessimists to open their e.yes in wonderment. Our chief concern is to get onr national accounts balanced, and for, this reason additional difficulties are created. If the risk was taken and a deficit carried for a few years in the causo of reproductive effort, at the end of that period we might well be ! in a position to meet our obligations [ to the full. We have suggested that | sufficient is eollected in unemployj ment taxation to justify the expenditure on development undertakings of £25,000,000 to £30,000,000, and we cannot imagine that any trouble I would be experienced in raising a loan for that amount with the security available and the. assurance that the debt would be extinguished in a few years, Then we would have real relief of unemployment and the Dominion would again be on the high road to prosperity.