The Waikato Times. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1940. “ AMAZINGLY USEFUL DOCUMENT ”

Waikato Times, Volume 127, Issue 21248, 19 October 1940, Page 6

The Waikato Times. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1940. “ AMAZINGLY USEFUL DOCUMENT ”

Discussing what one delegate described as an “ amazingly useful document,’ - the Economic Stabilisation Conference, representative of all shades of opinion, almost unanimously adopted a report which lays down an economic policy for New Zealand to follow. Will the Government adopt the policy ? It has been said by responsible Ministers that the Government has a definite policy which, with its majority in the House, it will put into operation. If it is prepared to accept the advice of a non-party conference of private citizens the country will be pleased. If it is not willing to follow the recommendations the conference will have been almost in vain. Adoption of only those recommendations that accord with the Government’s policy would be equally valueless. It is true that the advice of the conference in most respects does not differ materially from the ideals often expressed by the Prime Minister and members of the Cabinet, but some of them do differ substantially from the performance of the Government. For instance, the Government has said that civil expenditure, on public works among other things, must be cut down, and yet civil expenditure under the Budget dwarfs the expenditure for war purposes. The conference has spoken on that point. The Government has also said that the trades unions should realise that they cannot go on demanding higher wages because purchasing power has outdistanced production. Yet wages have been increasing steadily. The Government has asked New Zealanders to work for their lives, but still the 40-hour week is the order. Goods and more goods are wanted if inflation is to be avoided, and there is only one way to get more goods —to produce them by greater effort. Unless that is done higher wages will defeat their own ends.

If the Government is willing to adopt the recommendations of the conference, why could not a somewhat similar result have been reached by a combined effort of the parties in the Cabinet or in Parliament ? Are the political representatives of the people to accept the very doubtful compliment implied by the necessity to call a conference of private people to formulate an economic policy ? Certainly it is wise, particularly at such a time, to co-opt the best talent that the country can offer, and there can be no possible objection to the assembling of the conference, but the decision to seek such advice surely carries some sort of obligation to accept the recommendations, or at least to demonstrate their impracticability. How the Government intends to proceed with the report is not yet known. Parliament is at call, and the importance of the subjects covered in the report warrants the holding of a session at which the report could be discussed thoroughly. There is a danger, of course, of again importing politics into the matter, but if Parliament were to base its decision on the report on political considerations alone, that would be very unfortunate for New Zealand. It is hoped that the Government will set aside time for a full-dress debate on the report at the earliest possible moment so that the recommendations will have a chance of being translated into action. It is evident from the terms of the report that sufficient allowance—perhaps too much—has already been made for political predilections.