Withholding Charge On Wheat Discussed

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31716, 27 June 1968, Page 14

Withholding Charge On Wheat Discussed

There had been nothing more than speculation about withholding charges for wheat this season, the chairman of the agriculture section of North Canterbury Federated Farmers (Mr A. R. Mulholland) said at a meeting of its executive committee yesterday.

There had been no decision and no-one could answer any query about the withholding charge. He was replying to questions by representatives of the Cust-West Eyreton branch, who said their members were concerned that the wheat price negotiating committee had not said why the charge for this season had been doubled, who would control the withholding charge and what interest would be paid on it, and why the North Island incentive payment of 20c a bushel was being paid when the Government’s policy restricted acreage. Mr Mulholland said the negotiating committee had agreed to a 20c withholding charge during discussions with the Government to ensure that there would be no drop in subsidy. If the committee had insisted on 10c it would not have saved the subsidy. In most cases the charge would not amount to more than Sl5. making the interest negligible. The committee had no* quibbled at the 20c paid to North Island growers because they produced only 8000 acres of millable wheat and the

amount was much less than the cost of sending wheat from Invercargill to Auckland.

Mr R. H. Bedford said that if any branch intended to criticise the agreement worked out by the committee and won the support of the executive it would amount to a vote of no confidence.

The executive rejected a motion that it express concern at the action of the negotiating committee in failing to inform growers about withholding charges and the incentive payment to North Island growers.

The executive supported a remit from the Cheviot branch that the N.Z.B.C. be asked to give time for two quarter-hour programmes of ‘‘Country Calendar” in view of its wide appeal to country and city audiences.

It also supported a remit from Cheviot asking that hydatids clearance certificates be obtained for all dogs before entering dog trial grounds.