MEETING WAR COSTS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 October 1939, Page 9

MEETING WAR COSTS

4 VIEWS OF MR J. A. LEE. OBJECTION TO BORROW. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) AUCKLAND, October 25. Support for the carrying-on of New Zealand’s part in the war without the creation’ of a war debt and strong advocacy of the establishment of a State trading bank, were the outstanding points in an address given by Mr Lee. M.P. for Grey Lynn, at the Grey Lynn Library Hall last night, when he dealt with the work of the recent session of Parliament’. The two most important tasks ahead of the nation, said Mr Lee, were the defeat of Hitler and Fascism and the destruction of the conditions ’ which made Fascism. It. was useless tinkering with the symptoms, while leaving the causes. He expressed his views on the need for a new and different monetary system, and said that he stood for the prosecution of the war without the country piling up a debt. In the last war, while the men marched and fought, great war debts were built up, and when the men returned they found that they had thrust on their shoulders the task of paying for that war. He felt that in this war the country must pay as it went. Just how this was to be done could be determined as they went along. While defending exchange control and import regulation, Mr Lee expressed the opinion that a lot of the orders now going forward would be delayed by the war and it was possible that even if New Zealand had overseas funds it would not get the goods required owing to Great Britain's inability to provide them. This made it necessary to develop local industries, and he believed that by the intelligent use of credit resources New Zealand could build up industries and use men and materials not now fully employed. So long as the people of New Zealand could produce goods and services, and they could produce them, there would be po need for anyone to starve because overseas prices fell. Reverting to the cost of prosecuting New Zealand’s part in the war, which he said, unless there was a sudden collapse, might last for six or seven years, Mr Lee said it was obvious that if men were sent away or New Zealand maintained an air force overseas, we could not. send the essentials of their military equipment, and would have to find the funds elsewhere. He did not object to that, but he did object to the raising of a debt in the Dominion to meet the cost of war activity.