THE REAL ISSUE

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 365, 20 February 1937, Page 7

THE REAL ISSUE

SOCIALISM TO-DAY. Do People Require Such a ■ Policy ? (To the Editor). Sir, —Seeing that the New Ze:’land • Labour Party’s- Confer: nee is de- : dared by its constitution to be. the ; “Supreme governing authority of the ' Party,’’ its views upon future policy*' are of vital irXeres.t Io the electors. A study of the.BB renrts shows t.ha’ I complete State ownership and control of all activities, props:ty and en'erpyise is being advocated—not only that but a chim that these State enterprises shaill be governed by the workers in each case. Many remits propose a policy which would not be necessary in completely Socialised State. Until that objective is realised the is. urged to prohibit those v’ho own any property from Paving it. to their children: to tax “idle” bank deposits which can, only mean Ih day to day credit balances in current accounts; that only one bank, the State J( nl| operate in the Dominion, a proposal condemned by Air Snowden when leader of the Socialist Party in Gr at Britain: and finally the sending of a cl l egation to Russia to enlighten New Zealan-lers-on how to run th’s country. These except perhaps the last are quite in accord with the official Socialistic objective of the Party. Apart from the question whether these things are in the best interests y of the community as a whole, the furth r question arises. Do the

majority of electors really desire such a pplicy: Do they V s h that we should all become servants of the State, unable to follow our personal initiative, unable to hold or bequeath private property and become mere automatic in a State machine? That is the position we have to consider, and seriously consider, becauije we have ministerial authority that the Government intends to go the whole way to realise, its objective of complete Socialisation in every v'alk of life hnd enterprise.— We are, etc..