CONDITIONS IN DOMINION

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 59, Issue 263, 9 December 1930, Page 7

CONDITIONS IN DOMINION

Per Press Association.

REY1EWED BY LORD BAENBY. SUBMERGEN CE OF PARTY INTEEESTS.

WELLINGTON, Tliis cluy. Speaking on New Zealand conditioas to tlie Cluimber of Commerce, Lord Barnby said that, as he understood it, tlie situation would call for legislation by an agreement making possibie simultaneous amendments to all existmg awards of tlie Arbitration Court. That, like otjier actions, ^necessarily required courage and the submergence of party interests by local statesmen, but this was a real emergency and local patriotisin sliould make the eourse possibie. It would follow tliat, witli equal courage, the railways sliould be re-or-ganised as an ordinary commercial undertaking, made free from political !nfluence. Whj' try to evade the unescapable logic tliat it was 110 longer a monopoly, since road transportation, private and colleetive, was irrepressible competition which liad come to stay. Social service legislation and the «- tension of bureaucracy, however desirable in prosperitv, must in current adversitv be rigorously dcnied, even rutlilessly curtailed. Payments made for relief work sliould be linuted to a basis taifficiently below current rates l'or norma I eniployment to put sucli relief work into proper relation to a general wage rate and remove the risk of sucli relief payments disturbing the existing employed. Action by New Zealand along these and other ' obvious .lines would alone appear likelv to give confidence to '0*111 liolders and Vhen a correction had been effected it would make available to New Zealand funds which, like all new developing eountries, slie must have to ensure sound and prudent progress.