LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34151, 12 May 1976, Page 22

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

(1) Letters submitted tor print tng in this column must not • exceed 150 words. They should be written in ink oi preferably typed on one side of the paper Ample space must be ieft in the margins and between tines for sub editing marks (2) Letters written over pen names or initials wilt not ordinarily be considered for publication. A legible signa ture and full postal address —not a P.O Box number—ar? essentia! i 3) The correspondent must say i whether the letter has beer, or is to be submitted else where The Editor does not undertake to acknowledge hold, return or enter into correspondence on any letter not accepted for publication Reports of H.A.R.T. Sir, —For the information of Mrs Garrett, H.A.R.T. gets publicity because it is newsworthy. This explains the interview with Trevor Richards. The other story was Mr Richards’s reply to an editorial which attributed to him some highly misleading and false statements. H.A.R.T. is not a minute group as Mrs Garrett infers. H.A.R.T. has 60 to 70 branches and almost 10,000 households on its mailing list. Mr Richards’s three to four month speaking tour throughout the country involved more than 130 meetings and has revealed the large amount of support for H.A.R.T. This tour could hardly have been mounted and supported by a “minute group.” Canterbury is quite typical of nation-wide trends. In Fairlie. for example, 60

people came to hear Mr Richards. A week later in a follow-up Henry Isaacs spoke to 70 people in Rakaia, many of them farmers—reflecting the increasing conservative support for H.A.R.T.—Yours, etc., G. DAVIDSON. May 10. 1976. Sir, — The thought which has occurred to H. L. Garrett (“The Press” today) has no doubt been a cause for concern by hundreds of “Press” readers. Why so much prominence and publicity for a small group like lt is well known that, to boost their importance, they regularly issue “handouts” to most newspapers. But is it so essential that these regularly receive publication? One rarely reads accounts of opposition points of view, and certainly not as front page news or in heavy type. — Yours, etc., R. V. SHAW. May 10, 1976. Sir, —I wish to dissociate myself from the remarks in the letter by M. T. Moore in reply to Mrs Garrett. I do agree that far too much publicity is given to Mr Richards, who is a paid servant of a very very small minority whose views do not reconcile themselves with events in the world today. Angola, Uganda and a host of other countries are carrying out exactly what Mr Richards is complaining about. As I have said before,

Mr Richards might do a little more for the people of New Zealand and talk less. —Yours, etc., T. M. MOORE. May 11, 1976. Relief for teachers Sir, — Allow me to clarify a vita] point concerning teachers’ action on the dayrelief scheme as reported in “The Press” of May 11. Branches of the Post-Primary Teachers’ Association throughout New Zealand have been instructed by their national executive to adopt one of the three courses of action you reported. The key word ts “instructed”; an instruction is binding on all members. In view of the present feeling among teachers and the unanimity of branch support so far, serious dissent from a single member is highly unlikely. — Yours, C. A. WRIGHT, P.P.T.A. Executive Member. May 11, 1976. Labour Party conference Sir, — After suffering their worst defeat i,. history, the Labour Party and its leader go on blaming Mr Muldoon and the National Party for their removal from office. Hardly a word has been said of why they lost and Mr Rowling continued his personal attack on Mr Muldoon on almost every page of his speech. Many feel that Labour lost through their personal barrage against Mr Muldoon. Sir Charles Bennett mentioned Labour’s achievements but avoided the record inflation, worst overseas deficit in New Zealand’s history, a record internal government deficit and stopping the Springbok tour after promising not to. Mr Rowling also said the economy is “nosediving,” but it had already when National took over, and unemployment is now 1400 less than in December. — Yours, etc., C. G. MARSHALL. May 10, 1976.

Sir, — Mr Rowling’s conference speech was unjhst and arrogant. Labour offers “no apology” for wrecking New Zealand’s economy. “We are proud of what the third Labour Government did,” says Mr Rowling. Well, November 1975 showed how proud New Zealanders were of his Government. Just what is Mr Rowling proud of? Of turning a prosperous country into a bankrupt one? Of squandering our overseas funds so that when the crunch came (as Mr Muldoon predicted)' we had to resort to huge borrowing? Is he proud of the record inflation and the inflating of property prices beyond the pocket of the average couple? Or of allowing every Left-wing pressure group from the F.O.L. to H.A.R.T. to gain their own often selfish ends? —Yours, etc., E. SUTHERLAND. May 10, 1976. Taylors Mistake baches ‘ Sir, —We welcome the re!commendation of the ChristI church City Council’s housing land property committee to remove the baches from public land at Taylors Mistake beach. Some are rented for about $2O a week. Considering the very low “lease fee’ paid by the owners, this represents almost pure profit. Incredibly, one such bach was recently offered for sale for approximately $6OOO, al-

though sited on public land. The council’s decision to abolish the “lease fee,” which was of dubious legality in the first place, now means that those allowed to remain until 1986 will enjoy totally free accommodation, or pure profit from rents, for 10 years. As ratepayers at Taylors Mistake we object to continually subsidising those who contribute nothing to the community in which their baches are situated but rather detract from the great natural beauty of the area and add to the problems of pollution and drainage we experience here. — Yours, etc., GLEN NEWMAN, HANA SKACELOVA, ROBIN FRIZZELL, DON LONG, MARGARET QUINCE, ROBERT HOPKINS, JOY HOPKINS, J. R. QUINCE. May 7, 1976. Duck shooting Sir, —With the opening of the duck shooting season imminent, I should like to inquire whether shooting is permitted at Cooper’s Lagoon, near Southbridge, or is this a wildlife refuge? If it is a restricted area, as I have been informed through hearsay, why are there no public notices indicating the situation? —Yours, etc., P. A. G. HOWELL. April 26, 1976. [The Secretary, Mr J. M. Checketts, of the North Canterbury Acclimatisation Society, replies: “Coopers Lagoon is not a Wildlife Refuge or Closed Game Area. It is, however, a Wildlife Management area. Shooting is permitted in Coopers Lagoon and notices to the contrary are not necessary. If Mr Howell cares to call me I shall be pleased to discuss the matter with him.”] “Family Fair” Sir, —I was horrified on Monday evening to see certain members of the public deliberately baiting a small number of wild animals on display at the “Family Fair.” The animals looked miserable enough, in cramped conditions, and at very close quarters to a large number of passers-by, but to see them systematically provoked, in this case not by children, but by adults, was disgusting. I suggest that a fair of this sort is no place for wild animals and that, if they must remain on display, we accord them a decent measure of respect and dignity, always con-

sidering how we would feel were the positions reversed. —Yours, etc., (Ms) JANE ROBERTSON. May 10, 1976. Realignment of roadway Sir, — Helen Hervey, chairwoman of the Environmental Vanguard Organisation, is greatly concerned about road widening plans for Park Terrace. May I inquire whether any concern was shown for protective environmental values in the Lincoln Road area, especially of the proposed overhead motorway bridge? — Yours, etc., ISABEL WITTY. May 10, 1976. Railcars Sir, — After reading the story headed “Picton Railcar to Go” in “The Press” on May 4, I feel I should comment on the four unserviceable railcars. No. 1 had big-end failure; No. 2 was wanting cylinder heads; No; 3 needed repairs to collision damage and the fourth needed gearbox repairs. Give No. 2 No. I’s heads; give No. 4 No. I’s gearbox; and give No. 1 No. 3’s engine and gearbox. Then give No. 1 engine, No. 2’s head. No. 4’s gearb'ox and No.’s 3’s body to Ferrymead.—Yours, etc., W. M. SCOTT. May 9, 1976. Rents Sir, — What on earth is “New Zealand as people want it” coming to when we read of tenants’ objections to a mooted rental rise to $13.95 for a three-bedroom urban house and $7.95 for a threebedroom rural house? In the 1930 s the first figure here mentioned was paid by me on my mortgage instalments, but present inflation has lifted my rates to a figure very close to the new rural figure mentioned. Would someone inform me why a democratic society permits such insatiable greed to flourish when no rates or maintenance are involved under a tenancy contract? — Yours, etc., C. G. CRAWFORD. May 10, 1976. Pen-friends wanted A 26-year-old German woman, married and with a four-year-old son, wishes to correspond with women in New Zealand. She is Karin Lattmann, of Ohder Strasse 51, 56 Wuppertal —2, West Germany.