Joint submissions opposed again

Press, 21 November 1979, Page 3

Joint submissions opposed again

PA Wellington Environmentalists opposed one another and the provisions of the National Development Bill when they were required to have their submissions on the bill heard jointly by Parliament’s Lands and Agriculture Select Committee yesterday. The committee heard submissions from the Environment and Conservation Organisations of New' Zealand (E.C.0.), the Greenpeace Foundation of New Zealand, the National Water Protection Committee of Acclimitisation Societies, and Feminists for the Environment. E.C.O.’s chairman (Dr I. A. M. Prior) said his organ- i isation was unhappy to be forced to make a joint sub-! mission; and the remark was ; echoed by representatives of the other organisations

attending the committee's hearing. The senior Opposition member of the select committee, Sir Basil Arthur, (Timaru) also registered a strong protest to the committee’s chairman (Mr L. C. Schultz, Nat., Hauraki) on the issue. Mr Schultz said that the pressure of work would not allow for the separate crossexamintion of each organisation’s submissions by committee members. Instead, he ruled that the environmentalist groups would be cross-examined simultaneously once only by committee members. The ruling was not well received by the Labour members on the committee, and the environmentalists. Last week the Friends of the Earth, co-ordinator (Mr R. Wilson) said his organisa-

tion would boycott the select committee hearings on the bill because of the proposed joint hearing. Mr Schultz, said yesterday that the organisation had submitted preliminary submissions on the bill about three weeks ago. He said it was unfortunate that the organisation had not come forward with constructive recommendations. “Its main submissions have still not arrived and it looks as though Friends of the Earth has resorted to a so-called boycott to try to isave face,” Mr Schultz said. The committee is sitting from 10 a.m. to 9.30 p.m, from yesterday until tomorrow in an effort to hear evidence from all groups wantring to appear before it. The bill will be reported back to Parliament early next month.