WAR CABINET

Wairarapa Times-Age, 3 October 1940, Page 3

WAR CABINET

CONCERNED ONLY WITH EXPENDITURE AND NOT WITH RAISING , OF MONEY. MR COATES EXPLAINS. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day. That, the War Cabinet was concerned with war expenditure and had nothing to do with the raising of money for war purposes was stressed by Air Coates (Opposition, Kaipara), who was the first Opposition speaker in the debate on war finance. There seemed, he said, to be a general misconception as to the part played by the War Cabinet in war finance. Mr Coates said that the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Hamilton, and himself, as representatives of the Opposition in the War Cabinet, had nothing to do with financial policy, which was the responsibility of the Government. They were, however, concerned with war expenditure, but had not been asked about the basis on which finance for war purposes was to be raised, whether from taxation, loan money, or by the use of savings. “Many people believe that the War Cabinet is concerned with the raising of money for war purposes, and the basis on which it is to be raised, but that is not so,” said Mr Coates. “We are concerned with war expenditure.” The Prime Minister. Mr Fraser: “What the member for Kaipara says is quite correct.” What the War Cabinet has done, said Mr Coates, was to confine its activities to the war effort, and even that was difficult to define today. “We cannot shut our eyes to the fact that an effective war effort means sacrifice on the part of everyone,” added Mr Coates. Healthy co-operation between all sections of the community was required. He did not believe that the best could be obtained from the people by regimentation and bureaucratic control. Concern at the country’s war effort was expressed by Mr Coates*, He was not concerned about war profits, wages, cr politics, nor was he so concerned about the standard of living, but what he was concerned about, and so was every citizen, was his very life and existence. Any person who wanted to

be a passenger in the country’s war effort was not wanted today. “It is a common cause we are fighting,” said Mr Coates, “for it is a battlefor freedom —the freedom we have enjoyed and which we run the risk of losing. The matter is serious and cannot be treated lightly. There .has to be a spontaneous spirit and feeling of goodwill that brings the best out of people. There is no intermediate course.”

The time had arrived, said Mr Coates, when a greater effort was-re-quired in some industries. There was no place for those who stood in the way of the workers increasing theii war effort. If production were not kept up the standard of living would fall rapidly. It was to the interests of everybody who could give an extra hour to do so. Hours had been increased in many industries, and it was simply a matter of setting out the objective required. Mr Coates said it would be right to issue a warning to people not to live beyond their incomes but within them, and to save what they could from them. The war effort was the only thing that counted, and the Government must see that whatever sacrifice was asked for was fair.