Parliament at Work

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 58, Issue 171, 21 August 1929, Page 8

Parliament at Work

Per Press Association.

BUDGET DEBATE AGAIN Uiiemployment And Other Matters INDUSTRIES AND TARIFFS

M'ELLIN G TON, Last night. The financial debate was eontinued in the House of Representntives tliis j afternocm by Mr It. MU Hawke (Ivaia- j poi), wlio said he regarded tiie increase j in the primage duty as somelhing for J the time being. | Mr Hawke stated tliat land had l)een i bought too dearly in the past, and as a result of inflated prices many iarniers had had to give up tlieir holdings. There would be nothing like cheaper money to encourage those fanners still on the land to stay there and to encourage those wlio had left to go baek. SINCERE ENDEAVOUR. Mr R. Mclveen (Wellington South) said that if the Government was honest and sincere in its endeavour to bring about closer land settlement it could xely on support from the Labour Party. j\tr Mc-Keen expressed the view that if the increase in the primage duty returned £1,000,000 of revenue to the consolidated fund it would cost the public £2,000,000 or even £3,000.000 as a result of the increased price of goods. He advocate the forniation of a State bank, from which, lie said, tlie Government could probably obtain sufficient profits to halance the Budget. He refeiTed to the profits derived from State banking operations in Australia, which he considered should be equally possible here. THE SERVICE CUT. Mr -Mclveen, oontinuing, said it would cost only £238,000 to restore the oivil service salary cut. The Post and Tclegraph Department was making very large profits, and it seemed to him the time had arrived for salaries to be restored to their fonner level. Referring to unemployment, iMr -Mc Jveen said the position had not improved; in fact, it had become worse. He did not think the Government had done all it might liave done to face the position and had shouldered too much of the responsibility on to local bodies. Mr IU Waite (Clutha) said he tliought it was generally admitted that Kew Zealand had done more in the way of pensions for returned soldiers than other oountries had done, and even in settling returned men on the land he believed New Zealand had been more suceessful than other countries. THE CANTEEN FUND. All the funds that had been provided for returned soldiers would be required and they were keeping a very close watoli on the canteen fund. The Yocational Training and Repatriation Act had done very much to assist ex-servicemen, but it was now becoming evident that these schemes had been dropped too soon. All disabled ex-servicejnen should be given assistance whether their injuries had been received in the wai- or not. Mr M'hite mentioned tvpes of employment that were reserved for disabled ex-servicemen in Britain and other countries, and said he thought something should be done in this direction in New Zealand. Mr W. A. Bodkin (Central Otago) asserfed that the Reform Party, assisted by the Reform press, was endeavouring to stampede fanners into believing that they -wero seriously in aanger as a result of the taxation proposals. There had been many references to hardship, hut these niostlv concerned men who were in such a. precarious position that they would be in difficnltios as a result of the first slump in prices. WOULD HELP OWNERS. Mr Bodkin expressed the opinion 'that it would benefit owners of lieavily mortgaged properties if the State were to acquire and subdivide tlieir holdings, allowing the owner the nght to select one subdivislon witliout competion and giving him the asisstance of the State Advances Department and Intennediate Rural Credits Board. Mr R. Semple (Wellington East) said that one of the greatest problems of the day was to fincl employment for the uuemploved and for young people leaving school. One step towards the solution of this problem would be tbe development of certain industries. We would never develop to the full the natural resources of this country so lon" as we allowed our imports from the Tjnited States to exceed our exports to that nation to the extent that prevailecl to-day. Certainly tlie land was tlie best means of ahsorhing unemployment, but there were other avenues that should be exploited. The tariff harriers against the importation of our goods into the Bnited States were considerably liigher than the harriers against tbe importation of United States goods into this country. Th.ere should he 110 liesitatiou in increasing the duty on products from the Unitecl States, which had dealt so ruthlessly in trade matters with the wliole of the British Empire. CANTERBU RY BLOCKS. Mr H. S. S. Kyle (Riccarton) replying to Mr Bodkin, contended that tlie United Party was making advances to workers and settlers to no greater extent than had been maintained by the Reform Party, which liad provided advances averaging £3,000.000 per year during tlie last five years of its administration. IMr Kyle further replying to Mr Bodkin, said tliere were some properties in Canterburv that were producmg more to-day than they, would if subdividod into five or ten blocks and suhdivision would not- result in any auore employment. iMr Kyle asserted that the views expressed by Mr Polson were by no means tbe views of tlie fanners of Kew Zealand, whom he claimed to represent. Mr Kyle suggested that had the Uniled Party put before the country the policv it was now trving to bring into cfi'eet it would not be ocpupying the Government benohos to-day. Tlie number of fanners who would be nffeeted by tlie reduetion of tbe amount of mortgage exemption was 5933. Tlie Prime Minister had stated that it was impossible te effeet much economv in the public service but it seemed that there was great scope for economv in the Tmmigration Department, as there was practically no immigration polic-y at thr present time. The House, rose at 10.30 p.m.