OUR POPULATION NEEDS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 August 1938, Page 7

OUR POPULATION NEEDS

ACTIVE POLICY APPROVED BY PREMIER l INDUSTRIAL EXPANSION ESSENTIAL (By Telegraph—Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, August 3. “Unless we can populate it we can never hold New Zealand for ever. That is sure,” declared the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon M. J. Savage, at Oxford this afternoon. The question of pupulation was raised by Mr P. Fisher, chairman of the Oxford County Council. “With teeming millions within almost a stone’s throw of this country, it would be unfair and morally wrong for us to go on holding the usable territory,” said Mr Savage. “We must set about making things better and I am sure we will proceed along sound lines. First we must lay the foundation upon which to build the superstructure. We don’t want teeming millions coming here struggling for wages and jobs.” New Zealand had first to use the land to develop production. If it could not sell more of its primary products in other lands it would have to bring people here and sell goods to them here. It might be more economical to bring a man from Birmingham and sell him butter here than to send butter to him in Birmingham. “Once we cannot expand our exports we have to find an increasing market for our products in our own country. We will face up all right to expanding production.” Increased purchasing power had been advocated by him at the Imperial Conference, but it was curious how they could not get people in high places to understand that argument. They said it was sentiment. He said it was plain economics. “The moment London finds out that we are not buying from her, she won’t buy our wool. There is no sentiment about her on that point. We have been accused of buying too freely in London and also of not buying enough. Whatever we do, we get the blame for doing wrong.”