FARMERS AND CONTROLS

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26031, 7 February 1950, Page 4

FARMERS AND CONTROLS

FEDERATION’S VIEWS MONOPOLIES OBJECTED TO (Neto Zealand Press Association.) MASTERTON, February 6. With the change of Government it was fairly obvious that strenuous moves would be made to alter quite a number of legislative provisions, said Mr A. P. O’Shea, general secretary of Federated Farmers, a meeting of the wairarapa executive of the federation this afternoon. There was no doubt that some changes would be warmly welcomed by the farming community. This was particularly so as far as ending of monopolies was concerned. There were too many monopolies altogether in New Zealand, said Mr O’Shea, and it was certain that the farming community would welcome the return again to methods of healthy competition, so ably advocated by the Prime Minister (Mr Holland) in the election campaign. It was noticeable that moves were being made in the transport industry to break down the present system of fixing transport charges. Farmers would be most unwise to give way to this clamour and to jettison a system which they had worked so hard to achieve unless there was to be a return to real competitive enterprise in the industry. Mr O’Shea said that he always was of the opinion that one ounce of competition was worth a ton of control, and there was the further point that competitive methods saved the cost of controls, which were always very expensive. On the other hand, unless there was going to be real competition it would be fatal for farmers to agree to any departure from the present system of assessing charges. If New Zealand was going to have controls in any shape or form, it should go the whole hog, and control everything. It was impossible to have very strict control of licensing without having similar control over the monopolies this created.