REFORM IN OPPOSITION

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 707, 5 July 1929, Page 11

REFORM IN OPPOSITION

VIGOROUS CRITICISM Of GOVERNMENT

MR. COATES SPEAKS KE€f*L\

THE SUN’S rarl%amentary Repon^r WELLINGTON, Thursday The Address-in-Reply debate moved along this afternoon and this evening under full sail, with the Leader of the Opposition (thRight Hon. J. G. Coates) starting things in the afternoon by reply, ing to the criticisms of the mover of the Ac!dress. He made a vig. orous speech, dealing mainly with land policy and railways, and had a far from smooth passage, inter, jections being frequent and sharp.

Mr. Coates congratulated the mover and seconder. Messrs. W. A. Bodkin (Central Otago) and G. C. Munns (Roskill). respectively, on their speeches although he said that the mover’s speech contained inaccuracies. p or example, Mr. Bodkin claimed that Central Otago had been made the home of

the big squatter. This was not so, there were more settlers there now than in any other period of its history There had been a steady progression of closer settlement —far from aggregation.

When Air. Bodkin said that one mar. in the South Island had acquired 35.000 acres of land, be forgot to say that the land was carrying 5,000 sheep. It was also false to say that the New Zealand farmer was not scientific. He was ns scientific today as any other farmer in the world. The credit of instituting science and research in farming was directly due to the Reform Government. (Hear! Hear!). GETTING THINGS DONE Despite improvements in pubkc works alleged to have been made with the accession of the new Government, men were earning from 6s to 10s a day on public works. Mr. J. B. Fletcher (Grey Lynn): Tou can’t undo the evils of 16 years in six months! Mr. Coates: As far as the country is concerned, the people expected the promises made to be immediately carried out. Mr. D. McDougali (Mataura): Why didn’t you fulfil your promises? Another Voice: Why didn’t you get things done? Mr. Coates went on to refer to the agricultural bias in education promgulated by the Minister of Education, the Hon. H. Atmore. He said that the Reform Government in the past had established agricultural colleges to train teachers who could take positions in the schools to give that very bias to education. The mere fact of saying that an agricultural bias was needed was useless unless there were teachers to instruct the children. Mr. W. J. Broadfoot (Waitomo): You’ve had 16 years to do it in. Mr. Coates: The hon. gentleman hasn’t had a year yet. AGRICULTURE AND EDUCATION He referred to the agricultural education facilities offered by the Waitaki Boys’ High School and the Feilding District High School. They were examples of the sequence of the former Government’s policy. Mr. Atmore asked for the name of a primary school which catered for such education. Mr. Coates replied by wanting to know the Minister’s policy. Regarding the Governor-General’s Speech, he said that it was remarkable more for what it did not say than for what it did say. Some more statements about policy were needed. Mr. Fletcher: Tell us about your deficit. Mr. Coates took no notice, and later Mr. Fletcher asked him to tell the House about his record. Mr. Coates: My record can stand up to any form of criticism or inquiry. Was the Government finding, he asked, that it could not carry out its election promises and now trying the alternative of blaming the previous Government ? The mention of the stoppage of the Palmerston North railway deviation and the Taupo line lead to several interjections, and Mr. Coates carried on the debate with considerable vigour.

Continuing the debate after the dinner adjournment Mr. J. A. Young (Hamilton), said the Hon. W. A. Veitch now had a different view of borrowed money from that which he held when he was in opposition. Then he described the Reform Party’s borrowing as equivalent to a man who sold his home and went on a spree with the money. No\v he said borrowing was the one thing needful to keep the country prosperous. With regard to the Advances Department, Mr. Young favoured a reduction of interest to settlers. That had been promised by the Prime Minister, but the promise had not been carried out. SETTLEMENT OF LAND Mr. W. J. Poison (Stratford) said that land settlement was essential, but not wholly the solution for the problems that faced the country. He congratulated the Government on its policy, which was a change from that of the previous Government, which had confessed that it had nothing to offer in the way of settlement. Mr. Poison did not think that there was any chance of taxation relief this year in view of the catastrophe that had occurred to the country. The question of taxation, however, needed cleaning up, and the public could rest assured that the Government would attend to that.

Regarding railway expenditure, Mr. Poison said that it was one of the questions on which he was not in accord with the Government. He did not believe in the building of certa:n long-distance lines. The abandonment of the Taupo line was a wise move, as the lino would never pay in a century. The present remedies for unemployment, said Mr. Poison, were only palliatives. Increased production was necessary*. „ The next speaker was Mr. H. S. S. Kyle (Riccarton), who said that although a Canterbury member, he would denounce the completion of the gap in the South Island Main Trunk railway. He knew more about the route to be followed than the Minister of Railways, who had travelled through the district on a wet day, with the car curtains down, and gave an interview in Christchurch justifying the railway from a scenic point of view. (Laughter.) Continuing, Mr. Kyle said that he thought the present Government would not take such a retrograde step as to revert to the 999 years’ lease. Air. Kyle defended the late Govern* ment with regard to the manner which, it had made provision for the small farmer by* way* of lifting the mortgage tax. Referring to wheat, he ®aid it was better to have wheat grown in New Zealand than to have to import it, and when the farmers guaranteed that they could grow wheat protec* tion should be given them. The House adjojurned at • 1*