Human

welfare

before atomic

warfare - LPP

TORONTO

Demands that the St. Laurent government base “its home and foreign policy squarely upon the UN,” spend “our public monies on human welfare instead of atomic warfare’ and sell Canadian goods “to every country that wants to buy them” are made in a program of “six planks for peace” issued by the Labor-Progressive party’s national executive as parliament opened this week.

The statement demanded that the government guarantee that “no Canadian — man, woman or child. — suffers hunger or cold through unemployment.” :

Partial text of the follows:

As parliament meets, the Tru- man government, with the full sup- port of the St. Laurent government, is brandishing the H-Bomb in a fresh attempt to intimidate people and to blow the cold war into flam- es. A catastrophic economic crisis is maturing in all capitalist coun- tries; and Canada is in its grip, thanks to the policies pursued by the St. Laurent government.: To have preserved the hopes for peace and to have protected Canadian industry and agriculture from the developing crisis required policies rejected by St. Laurent.

To mitigate the evil effects of the crisis upon our people now will require policies radically different from those pursued by the St. Lau- rent government, it will require policies and measures which put the interests and welfare of the people first. :

The government rejected the path

statement

of world peace because it did not |.

base its policies upon the needs and

interests of Canada’s people. Then, as now, it sought to serve the aim of the would-be “world conquerors” in the United States; to transform their cold war into a shooting war > BOON:

That is why Canada’s export mar- kets are being sacrificed, that is why Canada’s national economy is sinking into crisis, that is why Brooke Claxton boasts that Cana- da is spending more per head of population in preparation for war than is any other country in the Commonwealth, while the homes promised by St. Laurent in his elec- tion speeches remain unbuilt.

That is why the St..Laurent gov- ernment boasts that it will spend $50 million for jet fighter planes this year, while nearly a hundred thousand unemployed men and wo- _ men who are receiving nothing from national unemployment insurance

are refused any help whatever from |-

the St. Laurent government, That is why the St. Laurent goy- ernment allows United States troops _ to strut around here treating Cana- da and Canadians as though they were conquerors occupying. our country. That is why Stuart Gar- _ Son, minister of justice, “hints” at action against “the fomenting of discontent and disaffection”, in plain English, the revival of the infamous, discredited “Section 98” — the stifling of the Civil Rights

of Canadians as part

ration for war.

* Peace and people's welfare go

together,

government can be compelled to make a very radical change in its foreign trade policy, the whole of our national economy will sink into. an -economic crisis even worse than that of the “Hungry

Thirties” and the war danger will

become more menacing.

The Labor-Progressive. party calls upon all democratic Canad- jians to demand that this session of parliament compel a change in the basis and the aims of the gov- ernment’s policy. Demand of your MP's that they press for action to:

@ Withdraw Canada from the war camp! Spend our public monies on human welfare instead of on atomic warfare. Call upon the St. Laurent government to re- pudiate and condemn the hydro- gen bomb.

Tell the U.S. government to take its troops, its installations, out of Canada—Canadians want peace!

@ Demand of the St. Laurent gov- ernment that it bases its home and foreign policy squarely upon the United Nations; upon the unanimity of the Security Coun- cil; upon the banning of the atomic bomb; upon a pact of peace between the five great powers,

@ Re-establish the markets upon which Canada’s agriculture and industry were built. Sell Canad- ian products to every country which wants to buy them. Open up trade with the Soviet Union, the People’s Democracies in Eur- ope,, People’s China. Organize barter with Britain and the en- tire Commonwealth.

@ Guarantee that no Canadian— man, woman or child — suffers hungex or cold through unem- ployment. Cash relief to all who do not receive unemployment in- surance benefits. $15 per week for single men, $20 per week to

* married men, $2.50 per week ad- ditional for each dependent child. Increase unemployment insurance benefits by fifty per- cent; make benefits payable for as long as unemployment lasts.

@ Amend the Old Age Pensions legislation to provide federal pensions of $50 per month, start- ing at the age of 65, without means test. - :

@ Protect the civil rights of Can- ada’s people Demand a People’s Bill of Rights in a “Made in Canada” Constitution.

of the prepa-

Cold spell froze up subs - but they’re thawed out now

Since when have Vancouverites

been afraid) of rain? With one exception, all February sub-get- ters to date are from provincial towns; a most unusual state of affairs, —

There are 400 unrenewed subs, which piled up during sub-zero weather, to pick up this month. Most of them are in Vancouver.

-So we're asking our supporters

to put on their rubbers, take out their gamps, and get on the job.

Here’s the Honor Roll so far:

VANCOUVER: T. Habenicht, 2. PROVINCE: QO MacDonald, Campbell River, 2; W. Stockand, Cumberland, 2; E. Tellier, Exten- sion, 2; A. Sukeroff, Kelowna, 2. N. Hamilton, New Hamilton, 2.

Unless the St. Laurent |:

The people must take this padlock off

Only a tremendous popular protest against Quebec Premies Maurice Duplessis’ notorious Padlock

Law, already being voiced by

the LPP, McGill students, civil rights bodies and labor organizations

across the country, can rip off the padlock here being fastened to the UJPO Cultural Center in Montreal by Paul Benoit, head of the Montreal police “Red Squad.”

Ruddell’s probingirks BCE financial experts |

Because the public “‘pays the shot,’ BCElectric affairs are public business. It is the duty of the Public Utilites Commission to see that the public is protected. These are truisms, but the fact remains that the public hearing on fare increases held by the PUC in Vancouver last week was turned into a glorified financial

strip tease on the part of the BCER, with PUC officials

all the facts could be bared.

Sally Rand always claimed that “it isn’t what you show that counts, it’s how you show it.” Dal Grauer and his BCE boys took Sally’s advice to heart, presented a few well-padded figures on ris- ing, operational costs, but quickly brought down the curtain when their profits started to show.

H. L. Purdy, BCER’s research accountant, blandly submitted a report showing a company “loss” of $3,000,000 during 1949. He reach- ed this peculiar conclusion by in- cluding the full rate of earnings allowed ‘the company by the PUC in “cost of service” figures. Later in the hearing another company mouthpiece, Bruce Robertson, ad- mitted that the BCE for all its services in the lower mainland, showed a net earnings allowance of $5,812,152 for 1949.

Further evidence on the fat prof-

its raked in by the company was disclosed by Emil Bjarnason, stat-

istician for Trade Union Research Bureau, when he appeared on be- half .of Branch 168 of the Can- adian Legion and replied to ques- tions of Bert Marcuse, who pre- sented the Legion brief.

Marcuse: To your knowledge, is the BCER operating profitably at the present time?

Bjarnason: Its financial state ment for the year 1948 discloses a profit before interest, divi- dends and taxes of $7,390,082, and net profit after interest and taxes of $2,603,485.

_ Marcuse: Is this an adequate profit, by ordinary standards?

Bjarnason: It was adequate to provide, after payment of divi- dends, a surplus of nearly $1,000,- 000, <

helping the company by dropping the curtain before

’

ELGIN RUDDELL The BCER couldn’t explain

Dealing with BCER’s advertis-. ing costs, Bjarnason pointed out that the company spends 17 times as much for advertising as the Winnipeg Electric,

Elgin Ruddell, appearing for the Civic Reform Association, probed

_|deeply into BCE expenditures and

sharp crossfife. developed. .

“Who pays for publishing The Buzzer?” Ruddell quizzed Purdy.

pal is included under items of traffic expense,” Said Purdy, “be- cause it gives valuable information to the public about changed routes, new schedules, etc.”

“But the principal purpose of The Buzzer is to act as a ve-

hicle for BCE propaganda, yet you make the Straphangers pay the cost of printing it “every

ape: observed Ruddell caustic- ally.

Later Ruddell asked for a com-

plete breakdown of certain figures presented in the company’s report. Company experts were riled and replied huffily that Ruddell show-

ed “ignorance” of big business bookkeeping methods.

“You can relieve my ignor- ance by filing a complete break- down of the items in question, lumped under one heading, ‘ad- ministrative and general’ . and

amounting to $635,698,” answered Ruddell,

Again Ruddell asked: “How much is spent on obsolete street

cars and how much on new equip- ment?”

“We haven't

the breakdown available,”

was the answer,

“You appear to have little avail- able except your own case,” com- mented Ruddell, and continued

firing questions on administrative costs.

: The hearing ended Friday and it will be at least three weeks be- fore the PUC' hands down a ruling on the BCE’s application to have the interim fare increase made permanent or rejected. Because the city of Vancouver failed to oppose the fare hoist, the company had expecteq smooth sailing at the hearing, but the sharp opposi- tion of Legion and Civic Reform officials upset BCR’s calculations.

Ruddell's contention that BCE financia] figures were “in round figures and quite inadequate” rais- ed the question of another PUC hearing to Permit closer examina- tion of company finances, Acting commission chairman D. K, Pen- fold said he would “put the re-

quest up to members of the com- mission,”

The obsequious attitude of com- missioners toward BCE officials, displayed openly at the hearings, leaves little hope that they "will Oppose the fare increase. Once again the long-suffering straphang- ers will get no help from PUC policement” as the BCE contin- ues to rob them through the med- ium of Straight dime fares.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FEBRUARY 17, 1950—PAGE 6