New Tractor Law Before House

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31801, 4 October 1968, Page 20

New Tractor Law Before House

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, October 3. Promised legislation to make the fitting of safety frames to wheeled tractors compulsory in future reached the House of Representatives today.

The proposed law will not apply to crawler tractors, which comprise 14.5 per cent of all farm tractors.

Under a Machinery Amendment Bill, it will be an offence after September 1, 1970, to sell any new tractor without such a frame; and the frames themselves will have to be covered by a certificate of approval. The legislation covers wheeled tractors weighing from 15cwt to four tons. Exemptions from the requirement will be available for tractors used solely or mainly for non-agrlcultural purposes or those connected with orch-

ards, hop, raspberry or boysenberry gardens, or glasshouse Culture.

The date from which the stipulation will apply coincides with the advent of similar legislation in Britain. The Minister of Labour (Mr Shand) said in Parliament today that, in the meantime, authorities would intensify their campaign to persuade farmers to fit safety frames voluntarily to their tractors.

It had been estimated that there were about 100,000 tractors in New Zealand, and it was obvious that they could not all be fitted with safety frames overnight, Mr Shand added.