ACTION NEEDED

Wairarapa Times-Age, 21 May 1940, Page 9

ACTION NEEDED

IN ORGANISING COUNTRY FOR WAR MR HAMILTON’S ADVOCACY. TRANSFERS FROM PUBLIC WORKS. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) BLENHEIM, May 20. . “New Zealand can well take notice of what France’s Premier, M Reynaud, said to his people two days ago: ‘France awaits action and not words from the Government,” said the Leader of the Opposition. Mr Hamilton, when interviewed tonight regarding the plan to extend the Dominion? home defence, announced by Mr Fraser and Mr Jones yesterday. “What New Zealand needs is an encl to talk and a start with definite action. This is what the whole of the people await, and await with impatience,” said Mr Hamilton.

He agreed that the proposals out ■ lined were good as far as they.went, •but the people would require something even more to satisfy them that the Government was really carrying out all that it should in the way of assistance to the common cause of Empire. The defence of New Zealand had been exercising the minds of many, and it would be recognised that the Dominion's defence was Empire defence—defence by the British Navy and expeditionary force overseas Apart from that, however, it was to be hoped that the present proposals: would make for efficient local defence. Mr Hamilton was emphatic that more must be done to transfer men from non-essential public works to production. With the loss of European sources of primary produce, the call to

New Zealand must be more and more production, and there was no doubt whatever that something more positive was needed than just a plan—action was needed.