FARMERS’ UNION.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 63, Issue 170, 30 April 1943, Page 4

FARMERS’ UNION.

SIZE OF CORNSACKS.

REHABILITATION QUESTION. As there is a possibility of the president of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union (Mr W. W. Mulholland) being able to visit Ashburton on May 21, the annual conference of the Mid-Can-terbury Provincial Executive of the Farmers’ Union will be lickl on that date. It was decided at the meeting of the Executive to-day to invite the Mayor (Dr. J. Connor) to open the conference. ’ Advice was received from the Dominion Executive .that the protest at tlie Government’s action in holding the increase of 10 per cent, in the price of wool for a suspense account sent forward from the last meeting of the Mid-Canterbury Executive woidd he considered at the Dominion Executive’s next meeting.

A remit from the Lauriston branch that civil family allowances be increased from 6s to 10s per child per week, bringing it into line with the military allowance, was adopted. Mr V. Wilkinson, who moved the remit, said, that if it cost a. man in tlie Army 10s a week to bring up a child it cost a civilian the same amount. A letter from tlie Wheat and Flour Controller (Mr R. McPherson) expressed surprise at the. executive’s wish to have 46-inch sacks retained as the standard size. A sub-committee' was engaged in testing certain sizes of sacks that were being filled with different types of produce. According to the convener of the sub-committee, there had been ti’ouhle at Lyttelton over the matter of overweight sacks for .years and a great deal of it appeared to originate in the Ashburton and Methvcn districts. A climax had been reached and watersiders refused to handle sacks of wheat exceeding 2031bs gross weight. He expressed the opinion that the Mid-Canterbury Executive was thinking of other produce besides wheat when it urged the retention of the large sacks. It looked as if the time had come when New Zealand must conform to the smaller sacks used in most other countries, and most of the bodies oncerned favoured one not exceeding 1831bs gross weight. Experiments were being made with a, 43-inch by 23-inch type which might prove satisfactory. No definite action would be possible for some time and all the interested parties would have plenty of time to consider the question. “It seems to me that we arc fighting a lone battle in this matter,” said Mr Wilkinson. , , It was resolved to inform the Wheat and Flour Controller and the convener of the sub-committee that the executive was not in favour of >a smaller sack. . . 11l connection with rehabilitation! it was decided to support the scheme outlined by tlie Farm Accounting: Association of New Zealand, which, had also been endorsed by the Otago Provincial Executive of the Farmers’ Union. A broad outline of the scheme, it was stated, was that deferred expenditure would bo exempt from taxation. It should not he difficult for farmers to submit an estimate of deferred expenditure accruing in any particular year. Fertilisers, fencing and weed eradication would come within this category, although it was unlikely that the Government woidd allow the inclusion, of items for which depreciation was allowed on income tax returns. Provided farmers were prepared to bank the amount of their deferred expenditure in a special rehabilitation account it seemed reasonable to suppose that the Government wanted this amount to be deducted from income tax returns. All moneys lodged in these special accounts would have to be spent during, say, the three years following the conclusion of the war. By this means a. huge sum would be available for expenditure and it would inevitably absorb a great deal of labour during the period following the war. If, during that period, trade generally was booming and labour was scarce the Government could of its discretion extend the period during which tlm fund could be expended.

A big advantage of this scheme was that it did not involve heavy Government expenditure. If unforseen conditions, such as the death of the farmer, occurred, the sum in the rehabilitation account could be released upon payment of the taxation at the original rate.