NATIONAL CABINET

Taranaki Daily News, 22 August 1919, Page 5

NATIONAL CABINET

COMES TO AN END, SIR JOSEPH WARD RESIGNS. HIS POLICY OUTLINED. A COMPREHENSIVE PROGRAMME. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last' Night, Sir Joseph Ward, leader of the Liberal Party, tendered to-day, to his Excellency the Governor-General, his resignation as a member of the executive council and as Minister for Finance, Postmaster-General, and Minister for Telegraphs in the National Government. Sir .Joseph afterwards made an important statement in reference to ths political position, and outlined his policy for the future. He had come to the conclusion, he said, that now the Peftce Treaty Was signed and the object for which" the National Government was formed had been achieved the truce between the two principal parties in New Zealand was no longer necessary, and ho could net now remain in the Government that had been formed for War purposes only. He had, after much thought and with the full concurrence of his Liberal colleagues in the Cabinet, come to the decision that continuance of the administration having naturally no real cohesion on any fixed principle, save the winning of the war, was not in the best interests of the country. In retiring he had a duty to discharge to the people of New Zealand in his position as leader of the Liberal Party. A NEW ERA. "The World is passing thruogh a new era," said Sir Joseph, "and all the dangers and difficulties besetting the older countries as a result of the four and a half years of war are more or less in evidence in New Zealand. I desire, therefore, to let the people know my views, and it is for those who regard the w?ll-being of the Dominion as paramount to individual interests to give them careful consideration. *

"It is necessary for me to say at the outset that I was unanimously re-elected by the Liberal Party as its leader in 1913, and my position has since three times been confirmed by my party. After the general election of 1914 the parties were so close numerically that neither of them was strong enough to carry on the Government of the country satisfactorily during the war period. The Liberal Party, from a political point of view, had everything to gain by remaining out of the National Govern-, nt, but, alter full consideration, althougn there were differences of opinion at the time, the party finally agreed unanimously to sink party and help to form a National Government with an equal number of Ministers representing each side of politics in the Cabinet, and with the lenders of the two parties retaining their positions as leaders in the Cabinet, the great majority of the public and press throughout the country were favorable to and strongly supported the formation of the National Government, and I and my colleagues have, in spite of many difficulties, been loyal tc the party truce throughout. T have abstained, botli h«re and abroad, from taking any part in party politics, either by organisation, public speeches, interviews, or otherwise. Peace has been signed, and the arrangement made between the two parties for the war period must now be brought to a conclusion, and it is only fair to those to whom I am responsible that I should relieve them by my resignation from a position that I feel it is, in the best interests of the country, desirable to terminate. THE NEW PLATFORM. "In retiring, I think I should apprise people of my views on important questions. The war has changed the whole world, and statesmen of to-day must recognise the new age. What was good enough for yesterday will not do for today or to-morrow. We are in a transition period, and good government, with strong administration, is vital to the country's welfare. New Zealand must be ruled constitutionally. The worker has just rights and undoubted claims to consideration, but he must not nullify these by demands which it. is impossible to meet, nor must he forget his duty as a citizen of our great country. By recognising constituted authority lie can assist the State, which has already done much for him, to bring about those improved conditions that alonoean keep the country safe and prosperous. As a citizen he has duties as well as rights, and he must not exaggerate his rights by ignoring his duties.

"The capitalist, too, must take heed that a great duty devolves upon him. He has a right to reasonable protection, but changes that have been brought about by the world upheaval make it imperative, in Ills own interests as well as in the interests of the worker and State itself, that he should view the altered circumstances from a broad and proper standpoint and make such concessions and sacrifices as the new era demands.

"Briefly put, neither Capital nor Labor can hope to succeed without mutual recognition, and it v the bounden duty of both to take a fair and reasonable view of the reciprocal needs and responsibilities of each and of the State as the final arbiter. A STATE BANK. "All the banking institutions have been of great service to the people throughout the war period, and it should be a source of great gratification to the country as a whole that the cost of money in New Zealand during the war has been cheaper than it has been in most other countries, pot excluding the Motherland. The strain of war finance has, however, in all parts of the world shown the importance of Governments having associated with them their own banking institutions. New Zealand, which has done so well, is no exception in this respect, and the establishment of a State bank in this Dominion would give additional stability to the country as a whole and be a source of strength to the producers and traders in the Dominion. In my opinion, .the time has arrived when, in the best interests of the country, a fully equipped and complete State bank should be established. It would have a wonderfully steadying influence with all classes of people in the Dominion, agriculturally, industrially, and socially, and would also be a source of profit to the country and help us to meet the increased expenditure due to the war. The Bank of New Zealand is partly a State and partly a proprietary bank. It has be«u conducted

wi'h good judgment and on sound principles. It has dono well for its shareholders and has been a source of strength to the Dominion as well as td other Similar institutions in this country, and in the departure which I now propose for the establishment of a State bank it would be fairly entitled to have an offer n-.r.de to it to become the State bank of New Zealand. It shareholders should be treated with fairness, and I would not propose to do anything unjust or unreasonable to them. They, too, should be reasonable. If, in their wisdom, they elected not to part with their interests in that institution it would then be necessary to look round elsewhere with a view to providing a State bank for this country. Such an institution should be placed entirely clear of political interest, and this, I am satisfied, could be done. It should have a permanent head with a reasonable number of men as directors to control and administer it. The whole staff should be brought under the Government superannuation scheme, and be paid fairly and fully for their services. I am inclined to the opinion that it would ba a useful change for the Government to allow banking institutions to have the right to substitute Government stock for gold as security for noto issue. This would be an incentive to them to invest from time to time in Government stock, and, as for many years to come we are sure to be using Government stock, there is a good deal to be said in favor of this proposal." REDUCTION 0? EXCHANGE.

"New Zealand will always bo a great producing country, and it is of first importance that any difficulties in the way of getting our products to the market should be removed. In this category I place that of exchange to oversea countries. During the war period the ratds of exchange have advanced materially. The time lias arrived When, in the interests of the whole community, there should be a considerable reduction, and I Would appeal to the Whole of the financial institutions to help to bring this about. This is one of the directions in Which a State bank would prove of con' siderable value." BORROWING. "Anything in the shape of a large borrowing policy by this country outside New Zealand for Government purposes would, in my opinion, be very costly, and for the next few years the sane policy of borrowing locally will be preferable, and will help to maintain New Zealand in her position of a self-reliant country. For that reason, I think this policy should be pursued. There is a great deal of money in the country, and we are mainly dependent upon the products of the soil to bring to the Dominion a large amount in excess of what we pay for imports. If the present prices for our produce continues, as they seem likely to do for the next few years, we should be able to obtain ail that is required fop Government purposes within our own shores. 1 am of opinion that tlmso lending money to the country for general purposes should be paid 5j per cent, interest and be subject to ordinary taxation." COALMINES. ''Coal is a most esspiiHal commodity in the daily requirements of the people and in transport service on land and sea, and it would be suicidal for the country if recurrences of the troubles that have arisen froln time to time were allowed. The time has arrived when the whole of the coal mines of New Zealand should be nationalised upon payment to the owners of fair and full terms in Government stock at the rate of i>i or (i per cent., bearing taxation All mines taken over that we required to operate should, where practicable, be worked under conditions similar to those of the present State coal mines administration, and the control of the mines should be placed Under a good board of business me'- uid representative miners, with a i.tiiister responsible on their behalf to Parliament. The erection of improved dwellings for miners should be a part of the responsibility of the State, and should be carried out with reasonable expedition. With a system of superannuation, proper housing, and sanitation, there would be no excuse for strikes for the purpose of adjusting difficulties that might from time to time arise under these improved conditions. It would be the duty of the miners to see that the mines were worked to their utmost capacity and to give a fair and full return for the advantages they themselves would reap. There should be a further supply of miners sufficient to man and work the coal mines effectively. It would be necessary to have some of the colliers State-owned and worked in conjunction with the mines to ensure the proper and cheaper distribution of coal throughout the Dominion." i TAXATION. The country which is able after the conclusion of a great war to keep its i taxation down to the lowest limit is one I that will successfully develop and progress, and will be the country best able to maintain its industries and increase its avenues of employment and hold its own in the fight for progress. It is not in the interests of the country that we should impose extra taxation,' unless it is absolutely necessary, I have already stated in the House of Representatives that there is no need to increase taxation. On the contrary, a considerable reduction in the taxation brought into existence to meet the war expenditure can be made. When readjustment is brought about in the incidence of taxation in relation to death duties and higher income-tax, it should be in the direction of exempting smaller incomes from taxation and small estates from death duties, and placing the amount thus lost to the Treasury upon larger incomes and larger estates. As regards death duties it is prudent, however, to (wait for another six months or so, by which time the full annual provisions necessary to meet the war expenditure under all headings will be definitely known. Then a recasting of the whole finance should be effected so as to bear equitably on those entitled to pay it. The taxation of co-operative associations and other co-operative concerns requires adjustment. Company income-tax should be upon individual 'shareholders' income, and companies should be taxed upon the undistributed balance. Further exemption in our income-tax system should be made in respect to wives and children of taxpayers. An ad- j jnstment of tax on incomes from mortgages is desirable to give relief to borrowers. EDUCATION. The age of many school buildings throughout the country and the necessity for the erection of new ones entails the provision of a large Rum. For this purpose I would suggest the expenditure of three million upon buildings. All building operations and repairs should be carried out under the direction of the Public Works Department. The system whereby the Government provides the money and another body spends it is not satisfactory, and in the interests «| jtjw

country, nnd with a view to economical expenditure, a change in the direction outlined would bo advantageous.

State education should be free frort the riromary schools to the university, and kindergarten schools should be included in the national system. All inspectors should be appointed by the Government and the powers of school committees extended. There should be an increase in salaries of all school teachers, whether in primary or secondary schools, together with a Dominion promotion scheme. All school books and reqtiisites should bo provided free. Vocational training should have consideration in the curriculum of all schools. I am in favor of evening continuation schools for technical instruction and training, and of adequate grants to technical schools. Free dentistry and medical service should be provided for all school children. The service for this should be fairly distributed among the medical profession. Freo transit should be provided for all pupils under 16 years of age. CIVILIAN LAND SETTLEMENT. While promoting land settlement for srtldiers it Imist not he forgotten that there is a considerable section of the civilian populatidn desirous of going upon the liind, and the interests of theso people cannot be neglected. I would suggest that £1,000,01)0 pet annum be provided for civilian land settlement. I would emphasise the fact that this means no additional taxation, as the settler on the land pays the interest upon the money, and it is no bunion upon the finances of the country. Indeed, lie increases production from the land, and so helps to augment the amount being returned to New Zealand from the sale abroad of its primary products. LAND FOR SOLDIERS' SETTLEMENT.

Land for soldiers is a necessity, a*id it has to be remeihbered that the land purchased remains a permanent asset, and that the interest upon the amount advanced will not in any way bear upon the taxation of the country. Whatever money is required for this purpose Should and must be provided. This does not call for increased taxation, as the soldier settlers provide the interest upon their loans.

To prevent Unnecessary delays ahd to expedite Soldiers' settlement a systeta of local land boards frhoiild be established for this purpose. state advances. It is useless placing a number of Soldiers on the land unless tliey have the wherewithal to enable them to work their properties, and with that object in view increased limits with respect to advances to soldiers—and they would also apply to settlers *nd workers—should be provided, with proper provision for advances on chattel and leasehold property securities. NATIVE LANDS. There should be more vigorous promotion of European settlement on unoccupied native lands, -while at the same time doing what is fair and just to the natives, i have already emphasised the need of eliminating material waste in all directions. This need should have our earnest attention, and in no direction more than in that of unused or wastefully used fertile lands, whether native or European. EXPERIMENTAL FARMS. Further experimental farms in each islnnd, with instructors, should be established. Students should be taken into all such farms, and should have a two or three years'* course in practical as well as theoretical farming. THE DATR 1 "USTSY. It will be necessary lo largely increase the number of dairy instructors. This industry is growing so extensively that it should, in the general interests of the country, be assisted in every possible way. OTHEP. PLANKS. Removal of restriction on trade and conducting our own trade within the Empire. Additional import duties against countries outside the League. Preferential trade within the Empire ond preventing late enemy nations doing business in the Dominion.

Development of local industries and encouraging fishing, nlso barring trusts t-y liconsinp freezing works. Cheapening price of bread. Nationalisation of ferry steamers between the two Islands.

Government to buy motor lorries «nd supply them to local bodies at cost price.

The raising 6f £6,000,000 for the immediate development of hydro-electricity Joseph Ward states he has already arranged for the raising of two millions out of the six required for Southland and Otago). Proportional representation for the cty and suburban electorates.

Women to be given right to sit in Parlament.

Board of Trade to bo given extended rowers to bring down the cost of living and stop profiteering. Freights, overseus and coastal, to be reduced. A national effort made to find solutions for industrial problems. A more generous provision for soldiers •ind soldiers' dependants. Machinery to ensure smoother working between employers and employees.

Permanent work and comfortable hous< ing for wafersiders.

[ More generous provision foi workers' I jompensation. The raising of four millions for workers' homes, spread over four yearß. Special provision for maimed soldiers, Provision for prospecting for minerals, £20,000 a year for next ten years. Alteration in conditions of old age pensions, Better provision for widows and orphans.

Extension of public service superannuation.

Review of public service pay, privileges, etc. Support for a suitable scheme for naval protection. Promoting the oil industry by subsidy and fixing prices of imported oil. Betterment of social, industrial, and commercial life.

Stimulating increased production by financial assistance and cheapening commodities.

Encouraging co-operative methods. Industrial and scientific research. Encouraging production of beet sugar. Completion of trunk railways in two years and other lines in three years. Free travelling for children up to 7 years, and half-fnres up to 14 j also reestablishing school excursions and pro viding fast and cheap suburban services. Electrification of suburban trains.

Vigorous roading policy; expenditure of £4,000,000 suggested, main arterial imdt to b« tht sm« ot iht Sttft