Labour in New Zealand The magnitude of the Government's victory
in the New Zealand General Election last Saturday was beyond expecta- tion. Although Labour was expected to win, a consider- able reduction of its majority was prophesied. In the event the Government's 54 seats represented a greatly increased vote, though the figure compares with 55 secured at the last election in 1935. The Nationalists have 24 seats, this year against a former 19. The Independents have dropped from 4 to 2, and the Country Party and the Independent Country Party, each of whom had one member, are unrepre- sented. Mr. Savage, the Prime Minister, was justified in his claim that the Government's success was. due to the fact that the people had-knowledge of the benefits of Labour's policy in practice. General prosperity has been enhanced by the Government's free spending, and the material benefits of guaranteed prices for farm produce, a fixed minimum wage for work-people, a forty-hour working week and reduced unemployment might well induce the electorate to renew the Government's mandate and allow them to put through their Social Security Act which will ensure pensions of thirty shillings a week at sixty to all and set up a system of free medical and hospital treatment. A fair comment on that is that only the upward trend of prices for New Zealand's staple products makes this programme possible, and that those favourable conditions are only temporary. However that may be, it is no bad thing that a working model of State Socialism in practice should be provided at the other end of the world for our profit.
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