'HELD TO RANSOM'

Auckland Star, Volume LXXVI, Issue 39, 15 February 1945, Page 6

'HELD TO RANSOM'

MINERS CHARGED

MANY WORK STOPPAGES

"The country is being held to ransom by one section of the community," said Mr. F. G. Baskett, president of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, at to-day's council meeting, when referring to the frequent stoppages of work by miners. Mr. Baskett pointed out that people were prosecuted and fined for selling goods at a halfpenny a pound above specified price, yet, on the other hand, the law was broken every day by miners and nothing was done about it. "In England, the Minister got out when he could not do the job," said Mr. E. O. Faber. He asked why the Minister of Mines, Mr. Webb, was "as sacred as the Mikado of Japan," He had been reliably informed that in every mine the Government had taken over the output had dropped. This has been the experience in Australia. Mr. Faber suggested that the Associated Chambers of Commerce should be asked to hold demonstration meetings of protest. The position at present was that a Minister who could not do his job was being kept in office. Mr. L. A. Eady said it appeared that the Minister was powerless and that a section of the community was holding up the remainder to ransom. There had been some very frank articles on the subject in the Press and he believed that very little more could be done to inform the public as to what was happening. Other members said that mining troubles were not confined to New Zealand and that the Governments in Australia and Britain were experiencing similar difficulties. The fact that the miners were frequently stopping work was costing the country thousands of pounds, said the president. He contended that miners who failed to do a satisfactory day's work should be drafted into the Army, also any agitators, and sent overseas where they would learn what work meant. On the motion of Mr. Faber it was decided to express grave concern at the whole situation and to urge that the provisions of the War Emergency Regulations be invoked.