SHIPPING FREIGHTS.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 227, 29 October 1914, Page 5

SHIPPING FREIGHTS.

ENQUIRY BY HOUSE. REPORT OF COMMITTEE. [From our own Parliamentary Reporter.] WELLINGTON, October 28. In the House of Eepresentatives this afternoon the Shipping and Freights Committee brought down its report of the question of shipping charges levied by shipping companies upon produce and goods of any kind shipped to or from New Zealand. The Shipping Freights and Charges Committee presented the following report to the House of Eepresentatives this afternoon: — The committee was appointed to examine and report upon such questions relating to freights and charges levied by shipping companies upon produce and goods of any kind shipped to or from New Zealand, as it may think desirable. The reason for the setting up of the committee was twofold: First the rise in freights on unrefrigerated cargo of 25 per cent., which was levied by the shipping companies shortly after the outbreak of the war. The other question, which is of much greater, importance, was whether there was a reasonable guarantee of the export trade of the country being maintained during the coming season. With regard to the increase in freights, your committee has ascertained that this does not apply to either frozen meat or dairy produce, but only to wool, flax, and other unrefrigerated cargo. This is the result of fixed contracts previously made by the parties. The increase of 25 per cent, on general cargo is to some,extent justified at present by the increased cost of insurance, through the addition of a war risk, the extra cost of coal and provisions, and the probable shortage of cargo on the return trips from Great Britain. But your committee is strongly of opinion that as the conditions become normal, the increase should be abolished. , t It is clear that the increase in freight on flax, coupled with the reduction in value caused by the war, will have a detrimental effect upon that industry, and as it employs a very large amount of labour, the committee is of opinion that the Government should consider how the industry could be most beneficially assisted in order that it might be maintained until normal conditions prevail. Evidence given before the committee showed that outside refrigerated steamers cannot be chartered, but that'the shipping available can be made to meet all' probable demands: for space for meat, butter, and cheese during the months of October', November, - Decern--ber, and January. It may be desirable for the Government to bring down legislation to enable them to make necessary arrangements with the owners and pay compensation for the delay of ships. It may be reasonably expected that by the time the refrigerated ships that are delayed will have got away, the commandeered ships will have returned, and will'be able to take up their ordinary running. To ensure this, the Government should arrange with the Admiralty and the owners for the return of the ships to New Zealand with all possible speed. ; The chief difficulty which presents itself to the committee relates to the export of cheese. The trade in this product is growing so rapidly that the shipping companies will require, in making arrangements for the future, to bear in mind the very great importance of this branch of our exports. For the coming season we recognise the difficulties of the position, and consider that they can only be met by special consideration on the part of the shipping companies in so anticipating and arranging for cheese space as to secure certainty of shipment. Suggestions were put before the committee that the National Dairy Association could monopolise all the space, and exclude other shippers not members of the association. The committee finds that the association have, by letter to the committee, expressed their willingness to share the space and to allow other shippers a proportion of the allotted space for dairy produce. Our enquiries on the matter referred to us lead us to recommend that a permanent board should be established, having clearly defined powers of enquiry regarding the-.-trade,, industries, and commerce of the country. Hon. A. T. Ngata (Eastern Maori district) asked if it was not intended to make the evidence given before the committee available for public information. Sir Walter Buchanan replied that the committee was of opinion that the evidence should not be printed, for the reason that, in taking the evidence, the committee was given to understand that the evidence would not be so full and exhaustive if it were thought that it was going to be printed. He did not think, as chairman of the committee —and in that opinion the rest of the committee were in agreement with him —that it would be advisable to print the evidence. Hon. A. T. Ngata said that very strong representations had been made by a gentleman in the Gisborne district about this evidence. For many years there had been suggestions of the existence of a meat trust in New Zealand, and a shipping ring. A gentleman who was very well known in the Dominion had made representations to the effect that the basis of the report of the committee should be made public as far as possible. It was admitted that the sources of the evidence, in so far as it related to the arrangements made between the naval authorities and the shipping companies, should not be made public; but beyond that he saw no reason why the evidence as to the transactions of the shipping companies, so far as they bore upon the export of produce and the means of exporting produce from the Dominion, should not be made public. There must be portions of that evidence which the man in the street could read, and which the shipping companies would not object to having published. The committee had evidently come to the decision that no part of the evidence should be printed, as it had been given confidentially by the shipping companies. If the House was going to adopt the principle that valuable evidence of that kind should not be made public, how was Parliament to arrive at a correct judgment about the rumours which had been going about the country for so many years past, as to the existence of a meat ring, and a combination among the shipping companies to the detriment of the producers of this country. lie saw by the report of the deputation which recently waited on the Premier that, since the declaration of war, four large ships carried 70,000 carcases of mutton from this Dominion to America, together with dairy produce and over 2000 carcases of lamb. ! Every carcase of mutton and lamb that jthis country had at the declaration of I war should havg been, made available

for consumption by British subjects in the British Dominions and those countries associated with Britain in the present war, and no carcases of mutton should have been sent fo America. (Hear, hear.) There was just a suspicion that in the particular instances he had mentioned there was, after the declaration of war, a connection between the shipping companies in New Zealand and the people who were responsible for the existence of a meat trust in America. The country should have had more information on that matter, and if that was given to the committee he should think it was the duty of that committee to give it to the House. He was not prepared to take the opinion of members of that committee as final on the facts before them. What those facts were the House was not told. THE PRODUCE CARRIERS. Mr Ngata went on to say that there was the question as to bottoms in which to sent produce away from the Dominion. The charge was that an association of dairy producers —the National Dairy Association —had made arrangements with the shipping companies which might render it difficult for those who were not members of that association to find space for the export of their dairy produce. Mr W. D. Lysnar (Gisborne) in bringing the matter before the Premier on October 17, mentioned his own case. He said that he had practically had a pistol held at his head to force him into the Dairy Association, but would not have anything to do with it. Mr Ngata" contended that- it was bad enough to have a meat trust find a combination among shipping people, but to have another combination of producers, which would work detrimentally to the interests of the small man who could not enter the association, seemed to him to be worse. The Premier gave a to the deputation that " the answer of the shipping people to the charges made against them would be published. Mr Ngata said he did not know whether the hon. gentleman would take the present opportunity of seeing that that reply was published. That reply was evidence given before a Parliamentary Committee, and was equal to evidence given before the highest court of the land. . The answer of the shipping people was contained in that evidence. He hoped that the Prime Minister would carry out his promise and see thai at any rate portions of the report were published, in order to allay the suspicions which were abroad amongst the public that combinations were at work in the trade of the country. Mr C. A. Wilkinson said that the National Dairy Association was purely a co-operative association, and it had been proved that a combination of dairy producers was desirable. The association's contract with the shipping companies had proved immensely beneficial both to producersinside the association and to those outside. As for Mr Lysnar's complaint, he had been able to prove only that forty-five crates of his cheese had been shut out of a full ship. Mr Lee: The-National Dairy Association was shut out themselves. Mr Wilkinson: Yes, no one can help full ships* He went on to declare that the contract between the 'National. Dairy Association and the shipping companies had saved the shippers £30,000 or £40,000, and the Committee had had proved to its satisfaction that if-<vjas beneficial, and that freights woulct have been increased considerably without the agreement. He was satisfied that the report of the committee was a very valuable one. Mr G. W. Russell said that as soon as matters became normal the public might expect the shipping companies to take off the 25 per cent, increase in freights which had been imposed. Mr G. V. Pearce thought the shipping companies had been justified in imposing the 25 per cent, increase in freights. It was only to be expected that a shipping company would deal more leniently with a large combination like the National Dairy Association, and although the committee had been satisfied that nothing had been done in the past to the detriment of small shippers, it thought that safeguards should be established to prevent the small shipper being unfairly treated in the future. Mr G. Witty said that the report was of little use without the evidence. It seemed to him that the report was on the lines of a white-washing one for the benefit of certain individuals and companies. Why should not, say, the letter from the National Dairy Association, be produced? Mr Pearce: a good reason. Mr Witty: Yes, the good reason of monopoly. The Government was assisting the rings, and was doing nothing to burst them up so that the small man should have a show. They did not sit in the House" to whitewash exploiters. The report showed who" framed it. / A Government member: Who? Mr Buick: Wairarapa. - Mr Witty said that the monopolists had undoubtedly pulled the strings. They had no right to allow the National Dairy Association or the big freezing companies to exist as combinations. He would move, if the Tories would not block it, to test the feeling of the House, that the evidence should be laid on the table of the House. The public had a right to know what was going on if some people's produce w r as being shut out. Sir Walter Buchanan: That's incorrect. Mr Witty: Well, we've heard otherwise. The hon. gentleman may say it is incorrect, if he likes, but some of us won't believe it. Mr Payne: We are not all members of the Ananias Club. Mr J. Payne said that if anything were required as further proof of the present Government being Tories and friends of the, monopolists it was the fact that the Shipping and Freights Committee refused to bring forward the evidence given it. He moved that the report be referred back to the committee, in order that the evidence be printed. ' Sir Joseph Ward (Leader of the Opposition) said that some of the witnesses were in the delicate position of giving details on matters regarding which, on ordinary occasions, no committee would ask for statements. Mr Ngata had got the impression that the questions of a meat trust, American buyers, and so on, were before the Committee, but not a word on those matters was said, and there was nothing in the evidence bearing on them, and the Committee was not set up to en- [ quire into those matters. It was not J advisable that information as to the business arrangements of shipping firms should be given out to the world and given away to their competitors. No committee would hold up the publication of the evidence except for the reason that there was evidence given for the guidance of the committee which ! the committee must respect. He. was against the creation and establishment \ of monopolies in this country, and against anything tending to give a controlling monopoly in the sale of meat or other foodstuffs. Personally, he i thought that members of the commit-

tee would be only too pleased to have the proceedings published, but to do so would be so close to a breach of honour that no member of the committee would like to have the finger of scorn pointed at him for allowing a thing to be done in the House that he would not allow in private life. THE GOVERNMENT'S DITTY. The Prime Minister said he had been pleased to hear the expressions of opinion as to the good work of the committee. He had never seen a chairman give so much attention to the affairs of a committee as had Sir Walter Buchanan. Personally, he would like to see the evidence made public. He had not been present at the committee when the understanding with the witnesses not to publish it was arrived at, but the House was bound in honour to keep to that understanding. It was easily seen that the expenses of the shipping companies had increased very largely since the war broke out, and the increase in freights had been justified. It was the duty of the Government, however, to see that the increase did not exist longer, than was justified. He believed it was the duty of the Government to do everything it could to prevent exploitation by monopolies. That was the attitude taken up by the Government from the first, and he did not think that there had been much exploitation in this country. Then.it was the duty of the Government to encourage trade, commerce, and business. People should do everything possible to keep their businesses going, and their men employed; to keep up the exports of the country, and take the advantage to bring as much money as possible into the Dominion. He happened to know that, the American Meat Trust had been doing business-in this country. So long as no monopoly was established it was the Government 's business to encourage competition, but to avoid everything in the way of monopoly. So long as the British Government did not say it wanted the whole of our meat, he did not see any harm iu exporting to other countries, excepting enemy countries. The time might come when it would be necessary to ask the- House to agree to .legislation to regulate the American Meat Trust. The time had not yet come, but when it did he would have . no hesitation in asking the House to do its duty in that respect. With regard to the suggestion for the setting up of a Board of Trade, he thought that the idea was a good one, although it was not a new one. The Board of Trade in England hffl. done splendid work, and there was no reason why there should, not be one doing a similar duty on a smaller scale here. Mr Payne said he would withdraw his amendment, in view of the statements of the Leader of the Opposition. The motion for the report to lie on the table was carried on the voices;