Wool trigger price queried

Press, 18 August 1980, Page 31

Wool trigger price queried

' Farmers will question the new trigger price for wool of $3.30 a kilogram announced recently by the Minister of Agriculture (Mr MacIntyre), a meeting of the meat and wool section of North Canterbury Federated Farmers has been told. The chairman, Mr E. W. Turrell, said the new trigger ..price, which was a 10 per cent increase, Was introduced ' as part of a wage freeze packet to contain inflation. But no other section of the community was restrained by the regulations. The rise in woolhandling • charges and the level of wage increases being negotiated by the Drivers' Union would ensure that inflation a continued at its present level, he said. • The meeting decided to set \ up a sub-committee to look at changes' in the standard ' values of livestock made by the linland Revenue Department. The Amuri branch presented a remit strongly op- - posing the changes, which 7;. were agreed to. by the Dominion president of Federated Farmers. Mr N. A. Macfarlanq said

> the increase in standard values would affect small and new farmers. It would remove the incentive of mini- ’ mum tax for fanners in their ■ first three years. : The new standards would ’ result in some farmers being I taxed on income they had not seen. Mr Macfarlane said a com- ■ plaint should be made about • the changes; they were I another way that farmers ■ were gradually losing incen- : tives. , The meeting carried a ret mit from the Sheffield branch asking that Federated Far- ’ mers approach the Rural r Bank to have goats included ■in the livestock incentive 1 scheme. 1 Mr J. B. Morten said that . goats should’ be recognised as playing a part in agricult ture. Goats were used to ; control regrowth of gorse, 1 for exports of mohair, and 7 meat exports were being con- - sidered. The meeting also carried a - remit to approach the Rural 1 Bank to have the ewe equiv- - alent on ewe hoggets in the 1 livestock incentive scheme changed from 0.7 to 1 ewe 1 equivalent, ■ ' '