Wairarapa Times-Age THURSDAY, JUNE 15, 1939. PRODUCTION AND PROSPERITY.

Wairarapa Times-Age, 15 June 1939, Page 6

Wairarapa Times-Age THURSDAY, JUNE 15, 1939. PRODUCTION AND PROSPERITY.

/ MUCH as the present. Government and its opponents differ M as to the nature and causes of the economic position in which the Dominion now finds itself, and as to the developments in prospect' they are more or less agreed that the reined? what is at fault'is increased production. As,to the . methods by which product ion is to be enlarged, the Government and its are very much at odds. They are able to agree however that an increase in the volume of available goods and services would make for prosperity In the extent to> whic they are alive to their own interests, the people of the Dornin _o will take hold .for themselves of that cardinal fact and ms st upon its being made the basis of policy. A serious feature of the existing position is a decline in our export returns. These showed for 1938-39 a decrease of £7,140,667 as compared with the preceding year. The rec^ tw * , was accounted for in part by lower prices and in ,P ai J V? a decline in dairy production. The reduction in export letuins in conjunction‘with a steep upward movement in internal costs (this last accounted for in part by an enormous nicrease in taxation) goes far to explain the difficult and somewha t thieat cning position in which the Dominion now finds itself, lhe latest bulletin issued by the Canterbury Chamber <of in conjunction with the Department of Economics of Canteibuiy University College' observes that althougli internal appears so far to have been maintained, it is difficult to see non serious contraction can be avoided in the near future. External trade, has always bulked so large in New Zealand s ' total trade (the bulletin adds) that it has governed internal trade, Seh in the past has always expanded and contract n, comequence of similar movements in external trade Nowexpt receints have fallen and ' imports must be drastically reduced The present level of internal trade has been reached onlv bv the expenditure of record receipts for exports and by exceptionally heavy expenditure of public money^’ 01 " and from inflation. Now the reserves have been practically exhausted and are no longer available, while inflation hae been checked for the time being at least. The prospects are, therefore, that a serious contraction in internal trade must *n c °n eouence of the reduction in external trade, and a further c °mi tion consequent upon the reduction of Government “penditur necessitated by the drying up of the sources from which Gov ■eminent money was obtained. A stale of affairs has thus been reached and is developing in which a measure of economy is forced even upon the present Labour Government. While, however, the opponents of the Government maintain that the position must be rectifier iy far-reaching economy and by drastic reductions of axa ion and other costs, the Government itself puts its faith m increased production and in the transformation of the economy o New Zealand, as the Prime Minister says, ‘‘from a primary producing , basis to a better balanced position.” Since the Government is in office, it falls to it meantime to deal with the undoubtedly serious conditions that are developing—conditions which definitely threaten a contraction ol internal" trade and employment. It is admitted that m the extent to which internal production and trade can be bml up, lhe economic situation and outlook will be modified and improved. What the people of the Dominion are entitled to expect in Ihe.se circumstances is that the Government should demonstrate in deed as well as in words that it is doing everything that is reasonably possible to foster and encourage the expansion or internal production. 'Mr Savage, as he is reported, has said dogmatically that “The forty hour week will not go.” Would it not be more reasonable to say that the effect of the forty hour week, with other details, will be examined with a view to arriving at the adjustment that will be most advantageous 10 all concerned? Members of Cabinet apparently are not all of one mind on this question, for the Minister of Labour (Mr Webb) is reported to have said at Christchurch a fortnight ago that, while he favoured shortening hours when that policy was practicable: — There might even come a time when we might have to ask the workers to work longer hours, to produce the things we need, in the event of our not being able to get them elsewhere. I would be the first to come out in support of such a proposal, to suggest that if production went down (and with it the standard of living in New Zealand) there should be an extension of working hours, say for a period of six or twelve months, until we had * ample of the things wo needed. 1 In such conditions as are developing in New Zealand today. 11 is definitely a quest ion for the workers to consider whether the forty hour week for a section of their number, together with an increased and rising cost of living and hampered product ion, should be regarded as anything else than a gift from the Greeks. Just how far increased internal production is capable of contributing to a solution of present and prospective difficulties is a moot question. There is no doubt, however, that the imposition of needless restrictions on internal production is as good a way as could be found of intensifying and aggravating these difficulties as they affect the population generally.