PRESS ADMITTED

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23807, 28 November 1942, Page 4

PRESS ADMITTED

DECISION OF NORTH OTAGO COUNCIL (P.A.) • OAMARU, November 27. Contrary to a direct request from the Department of Agriculture, the North Otago Primary Production Council, at its meeting this afternoon unanimously decided that its meetings should be open tef the press. The department, in a letter to the council, signed by Mr R. B. Tennent, Director of the Fields Division of the Department of Agriculture, expressed the view that there should be careful supervision of matter going to newspapers, and suggested that the secretary should prepare ‘‘discreet re. ports for publication.” The acting-chairman (Mr B. B. Walton) said he did not think there was any necessity to exclude the press. If anything of a confidential nature came before the production council, reporters could be so informed and reliance placed upon their discretion. Mr A. C. Hurst: We have always had fair and full reports. I consider it an advantage to have the press at our meetings. It’s all very well for the director to talk about confidential stuff; they haven’t given us any yet. Our reporters have always been most helpful. Mr Gill: It would be totally wrong to exclude the press from our meetings. Mr D. J. Ross said there would naturally be some matters that must be treated as confidential. For instance, anything detrimental to the security of the country could be covered by an instruction to reporters. Mr A. C. Hurst (laughing): You needn’t worry about that when • the Hon. Walter Nash broadcasts from Washington that there are 160,000 /troops in New Zealand. The secretary-organiser (Mr R. B.' Meek) drew attention to a circular letter, received at the last meeting, which carried a direction that all possible publicity should be given to it in the press. “A week later,” he added, ‘‘the director writes asking us not to have reporters, thereby turning a pretty quick somersault.” (Laughter.) The meeting then unanimously decided that ‘‘notwithstanding any direction to the contrary, the meetings of the production council should be open to the press.”