NATIONAL PARTY

Wairarapa Times-Age, 14 September 1943, Page 3

NATIONAL PARTY

, MR G. H. MACKLEY OUTLINES POLICY LABOUR’S ADMINISTRATION CRITICISED. ADDRESS AT CENTRAL SCHOOL. About fifty electors were present in the Masterton Central School Assembly Hall last night when Mr G. H. Mackley, National Party candidate for the Masterton seat, gave a political address. The deputy-Mayor, Councillor W. White, presided. Although there were some interjections, especially from one elector, Mr Mackley was accorded an attentive hearing. On the motion of Mr W. Kemp, a vote of thanks and confidence was declared carried on the voices. Referring to the celebration of the victory over Italy, Mr Mackley said that in his opinion it would be a better celebration and a noble gesture if the Prime Minister offered to Mr Holland to call the election off and form a national government representative of all the people. With all the excellent prospects he had of becoming the representative of Masterton on September 25 he would forego those prospects willingly to see a united Parliament and a united people with oply one purpose—victory and peace. He was cer■tain that Mr Holland would accept] that gesture in the same spirit in which I it was offered. Mr Mackley spoke at length in defence of Mr Holland’s work as a member of the War Administration, of how Mr Holland had tried to work in collaboration and of his decision regarding the Waikato miners’ strike, which cost the country 53,000 tons of coal and £25,000 in wages. No self-respecting man, said Mr Mackley, could have remained in the War Administration after what had occurred. When the National Party was returned to power on September 25, it would form a truly national government, representative of all parties. MANPOWER MUDDLE The war effort came first and Mr Holland had given his pledge that the National Party would use the country’s resources to the fullest possible extent in this connection, said Mr Mackley. Every military and economic factor would be used with optimum intensity. The present position appeared to be unbalanced and wasteful and was made more difficult by the conflicting statements of the Minister of Defence and the Prime Minister. The manpower problem of New Zealand was in the muddle and uncertain position as had been the Home Guard and E.P.S., both of which organisations had just muddled through. They found elderly women in the paddocks and in the cow bails doing work which was beyond their physical strength, whilst in the towns and elsewhere young girls were being used to drive officers around. The National Party would have a thorough overhaul of the manpower position. SHORTAGE OF HOUSES. There was a regrettable shortage of houses, leading to deplorable conditions. said Mr Mackley. This shortage was partly due to war conditions but more particularly to the interference with private enterprise. It interfered with healthy competition and broughtabout a degree of stagnation in the building of homes. From April 1, 1935, to March 31, 1940, State and private enterprise between them built 30.936 houses. For the five years from 1926 to 1930 private enterprise alone built 30,678 houses. From 1924 to 1928 private enterprise alone built 31,769 houses. Mi' Mackley quoted figures to show the increase in cost of houses, during the period from 1935-36 to 193839. A four-roomed house increased in cost 65 per cent, a five-roomed house 45 per cent and a six-roomed house 27 per cent. He quoted reports concerning shocking housing conditions in Auckland, which were a sad commentary on the standards of life in New Zealand. The National Party realised that a happy and spiritual family life should be developed and encouraged in the people’s own homes. The conditions he had described were a disgrace to civilisation. The shortage of houses would be overcome by a National Government. The National Party proposed to employ 25,000 additional men for ten years, to restore to private enterprise its right and legitimate place in housing. They proposed ot reduce building costs by the re-establishment of healthy competition between private contracting interests and the development of the pre-fabrication methods along approved and tested lines. The freehold would be granted to everyone desiring it and the present rental method would be retained for those who preferred it. SUSPICION OF EXPLOITATION. “I would like to put the Price Tribunal on some of these things,” said Mr Mackley. referring to what he termed indications of exploitation by the State. The Minister of Finance had stated recently that the sum of £395,000 had been transferred in profit to the State from the Housing Account. The same suspicion of exploitation was apparent, he said, in the surpluses of the Broadcasting Account and the War Risk Insurance scheme. Mr Nash had declared that 5000 State houses were to be constructed at a cost of £6OO per house but the cost today was probably nearer £l5OO per house. Along with the building up of the educational system, said Mr Mackley, should go the building up of the moral and ethical standards of the children. The party believed in the unification of the controlling bodies and of the teaching services. It did not believe, as a member of the Labour Government believed, that the saluting of the flag was to be regarded as a mumbo-jumbo business of saluting the totem pole. PUBLIC SERVICE APPOINTMENTS Owing to a departure from the spirit of the terms of the Public Service Act, the standards were weakening, said Mr Mackley. Control by the Public Service Commissioner was steadily slippinging from his hands. Political patronage was more rarflpant in New Zea- , land than ever before,. Mr Mackley cited instances of appointments of defeated political candidates and others as- ■ sociated with the Labour movement ; and devoted much time in criticising the appointments. Many of those appointments carried salaries far in excess of those paid to more worthy and well experienced departmental officers and many got jobs without one iota of experience and knowledge of the job taken up. The National Party promised that this system of political patronage would cease and the responsibility for appointments to the Public Service restored to the proper authority under the Act, the Public Service Commissioner.