LABOUR POLICY

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVII, Issue 206, 31 July 1937, Page 11

LABOUR POLICY

MR HAMILTON’S COMMENT. “STATE OF PANIC.” Per Press Association. WELLINGTON, July 30. “The statements made by the Prime Minister (Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage) and Hon. P. Eraser at the Labour Party’s reception to Mr Savage on Thursday show that the Government is in a state of panic over the great and widespread opposition to its policy being voiced all over the country,” stated tho leader of the National Party (Hon. Adam Hamilton) to-day. “Mr Savage and Mr Fraser are indulging in the unprofitable pastime of whistling to keep their courage up. In order to hearten their supporters they endeavour to show that the Opposition to them is negligible, but the hollowness of their hope is shown by the anxiety they ,are displaying. They know quite well that nil the bluffing in the world will not stave off the retribution that, will be handed out to them by the electors whom they have misled so greatly.

“Even Mr Semple, as reported in the Labour Party’s official organ on July 1, said, ‘The unions must fight and spend their last shilling, if necessary, to keep Labour on the Treasury Benches.’ NATIONALIST GROWTH.

“Apart altogether from the opposition being voiced by every organisation and every section outside the ranks of the militant trades unionists, the tremendous and gratifying growth of the National Party organisation and membership shows very clearly that the people are concerned with the situation and will demand very much more than a series of high-soun.ding platitudes. The National Party could ask for nothing better than that the Prime Minister should carry out his intention of visiting, the various centres of New

Zealand. That is, of course, so long as Mr Savage will explain the vast difference between his party’s promise and performance. When Mr Savage visits those main centres he will no doubt bo enthuiastically received by members of well-drilled militant Labour followers. But that will not satisfy the thousands who are suffering under conditions brought about by his party’s administration conditions which experienced travellers say have made our cost of living the highest in the world. Although they have travelled extensively this factor has probably escaped the notice of Mr Savage, Mr Nash, and Mr Armstrong. “Mr Savage might also explain the discrepancy between the statements made from time to time by himself and by members of his Cabinet. If he will do this he will have material for discussion on not one but many tours of the Dominion. Prior to the election Mr Sullivan issued a manifesto in Christchurch in which he showed that the cost of living would decrease under a Labour Government, and as late as January of this year, Mr Savage, in a characteristic utterance said :

“If we raise wages and decrease the hours of labour and then allow prices to go up in the same ratio we will have altered nothing.’ ' “EXPLANATION NEEDED.”

“Yet on July 28, Mr Sullivan! in what Mr Eraser describes as his ‘adequate, complete, and crushing reply to the manufacturers,’ said : ‘The Government recognised that its industrial legislation would have a tendency to raise, costs in New Zealand.’ It will be admitted that even in this one connection there is a wide field for explanation open to Mr Savage, and even some of those staunch supporters of his who will clear him to order, will await that explanation with interest. “It is a noticeable fact that although the Government claims to welcome criticism. never once has any criticism been effectively answered. On every occasion critical statements have been met with dissertations in which quantity is mistaken for quality and the point at issue has always been evaded. It has usually been accompanied by an attack on the Press which, according to Mr Eraser, should not put doublecolumn headings upon anything unfav-

ourable to the Government. An instance of this is continued in the socalled ‘crushing’ reply to the manufacturers, which contains a great deal of criticism of those making the statement, but nothing about the disabilities under which the manufacturers are suffering because of the high costs directly due to the Government’s actions, and nothing about the workers being thrown out of employment as a result. Even since the ‘crushing’ reply was issued we find 13 men put out of work in one Christchurch factory.

“Further than this we find that from one end of New Zealand to the other dairy-farmers are complaining of the ruinous position in which they are finding themselves. Mr Fraser says the vast majority of dairy-farmers support the policy of the Government. Has lie not. read the report of Farmers’ Union meetings all over the country at which it is clearly pointed out that, to meet the increasing costs, an extra 3-1 d per pound for butterfat is necessary? I suggest that something more is demanded in answer to these points than statements indicating that opponents will have to take their medicine, and attacks on the newspapers.”

The statements referred to by Mr Hamilton appear on page 7.