‘Disappointing' Decision

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31772, 31 August 1968, Page 1

‘Disappointing ' Decision

(N Z. Press Association)

WELLINGTON, August 30.

The chairman of the electoral committee of the Wool Board (Mr F. E. Humphreys) said from his home in Gishome tonight that he was “most disappointed” at the decision to continue the supplementary payments.

At its meeting last week the committee passed a resolution that there should be no supplementary payments for the coming season and that market realisation for wool should be accepted by growers. It was felt that many growers were in need of financial assistance but that this help should be made available from sources other than money borrowed by the woolgrowing industry. “It is enlightening to look at the state of the finances of the Wool Commission,” Mr Humphreys said. “In 1966 the wool industry fund stood at S73m, but today the estimate of the uncommitted assets in the stockpile

of wool is only S46m, so it has already cost the industry approximately s27m to cushion the effect of the disastrous fall in the price of wool during the last two seasons.

“Supplementation does not give enough financial assistance to the needy woolgrower and those growers who are paying income tax will return to the Government in tax a proportion of their supplementation, which has already been borrowed from that source.