THE UNEMPLOYED QUESTION

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 116, 14 June 1909, Page 3

THE UNEMPLOYED QUESTION

AX OPPOSITION CHABt! E. GOVERNMENT AXSWEK. A suggestion that I'ariiameat wr. careless of the interest of the unemployed by nituuniiug early this wevl; was raised .by several Opposition speakers during Friday's debate, and Mr. I'. Newman (Manawatu) iplaiulv imlieaLed the nature of hi< colleagues' insinuations when be asked if it could be said that the proposal was reallv made ii. the public interest. Public works could not l>e expected to go on at the proper rate when Parliament was not sitting. The Prime Minister: Who told you that?

Mr. Massey: \\ ell, it'«s a-bsolntelv CO' rect.

'-Mr. Xewman said that this was' n matter of common talk. He urged that the expenditure 141011 public >\vork- m the cities should-lie considerably curtailed until necessary works in the country, works which people had an absolute light to, were carried out. So far as unemployment was concerned, he was sorry to find that some Government supporters professed to believe tli.it there hut few wanting work. Then it' " lls >t that in Wellington the establishment of soup kitchens had already :been found necessary? A member: Oh. that's „ Tory vara' Mr. llassey: It's absolutely- true. Mr. Xewman urged that o'ne way io brmg about a return of good times would he by the removal of restrictions upon the employment of capital. Sir Joseph Ward remarked that s'ure- » i •! J-*PP 0s| tiOn was not endeavoring to build up H'pon a.n unemployment crv a movement ag:iin*t the Dreadnought offer. The suggestion that the baek■i>l<KTKs roads would be neglected was nonsense, Vocalise a Loan Bill would be raised and the authorisations extended. If the session had not adjourned, the authorisations would not be adopted until November. What the Government had done and would continue to do was a far greater alleviation of the position than the outpourings of those who cried out about the unemployed problem. It' fad been suggested that people were leaving the country in Inrwe ers ' rca ' fact's showed thu"t 18,119 persons had arrived in Xew Zealand this year up till May, while the departures were 17,441, s0 that there was a clear gain of 700. There 'had been a reference to soup kitchens, but it should not .be suggested that the Gov eminent was to d'ebase New Zealand by that abominaible system. What had been done was the provision of a generous woman, whose activities in this direction had extended over several ■waters hut on Saturday the Government would ask Parliament to put through authorisations for further reproduietiVe public works. Then thev would be prepared to put more men oni Authorisations expired at the end of June, and the Government was not able to put on as many men as it would like, '! ut o' lv e it the authorisations and Parliament need have no qualms of contoence, ™ uneasiness- about the recess. The talk he had heard abaut unemployment was unfair to those unfortunate people who were out of work. It Vas trying to create an impression that the fcovernment was anxious to forget d J J , t - v to those who wanted work, kind ernmeslt dW nothing of the

' HOW TO OVERCOME THE DIFFICULTY. "OPEX UP THE LAXD." The unemployed difficulty was also touched upon by several speakers in the Legislative Council on Fridav. 'The first reference was made bv the Hon. J. Anstey (Canterbury), who thought that some published statements were rather overdrawn. In farming, for instance, he found that there was quite ns much difficulty as ever in getting good men, while a deal of workload actually to be left undone owin" to 1'! r 1 : ?/ He di(l not dispute tlie fact that there M-a6 a aumbfcr of unemployed in the cities, but felt that *he state of affairs was not anything Ivke so acute now as it had been some other occasions. The Prime Ministers proposal to establish retrenched tiyi servants on tire land did not meet with Ins- approval, for he did not consider that the idea of sending men used to drivi-.ig the quill- into the bush to subdue the wilderness with a tomahawk would be at all effective. To his mind labor itself had something to do with the present state of affairs bv ron- , sn, i °f the restrictions which did not allow of a fair day's work being done ■for a fair day's l pay.

T-riK solcttox. He was of opinion that tin- solution of 'ibe question !«y in t:lie proper development of our nntuTal resources of the jand. There were hundreds and liuni J reds of people anxious to "ft cm the And if only tliey were allowed, and ho yhouifht tluit steps >:hould ibe taken to throw the land open as soon as -possible. rThat wouM do much to overcome the BdifTimilty. He also .passed some strictures upon land administration in general, saying t:liat it had not come up to tim high idenls which should he ex)eeted from a Lfberal Government. It ivas becoming chronically had and it Ms high time that the wlio'ie question Was gone into with a view to putting the administration upon a: pr£ [per 'lmsis. At present we were locking the land up and taking employment from large numbers. He did not'think it necessary for Parliament to tase acItion, as Ministers 'had already >iliu power to do what was required. THE OOVKRXMKXT'S ATM.

Tjater in the debate the Hon. Dr. Findilay. Leader of the Council, said he could not admit that what the Horn Mr. Anstey had said had amounted to a charge against the administration of the Government to which lie .was called to reply. He asserted that the Government was doing all it could to exteml closer settlement as rapidly and as' effectively as its powers permitted.