ADDRESS-IN-REPLY DEBATE.

Taranaki Daily News, 21 July 1917, Page 2

ADDRESS-IN-REPLY DEBATE.

MR. G. V. PEARCE'S CONTRIBUTION. (Our Parliamentary Reporter). Wellington, July IS. Mr. G. V. pearce (Patea) made a vigorous speech in the House this evening. He dealt specially 'with the butterfat tax, which, he said, had been a grossly unjust imposition upon the dairy farmers. It was true that meat, wool, and other .products had been taken by the Government at below market rates, but the farmers had submitted because they considered that they were helping to win the war. He was sure that every farmer in the country desired to see butter supplied to the people of New Zealand at a fair price, but the arrangement should have been made on a proper basis. He considered that the cost of keeping down the retail price in the local market should have been a charge on the public account. Mr. Mac Donald: "The farmers are all generous that way." Mr. Pearce: They are willing to do the right thing, but they object to being exploited. He proceeded to advocate a local war loan and said that the Government had been taking too much from the public by way of taxation. The Government had invested five millions in the British war loan, proving clearly that too much money had been taken by taxation. Jt might be right to have an interest in England but the amount seemed far too large. Sir Joseph Ward: "Not half enough as a matter of fact for what we haveto do there. Mr. Pearce opposed the excess profits tax, which he considered had operated most Unfairly, and urged that the Government ought to do something to lessen private extravagance. Six o'clockclosing should be enforced but the loss should be borne (by the owners of houses and hotels, not by the hotel-keepers. The laws of the country had created a huge monopoly and the monopolists should be taxed. Mr. Vigor Brown (Napier): The brewers don't want to be monopolists. Will you give us the right to open more licensed houses?" Mr. Pearce: "The effect would be that your hotel property would drop about SO per cent, in value." He would vote for early closing in order to stop extravagance. The anti-shouting law had always been a farce and could not be enforced.