Appeal against land sale unsuccessful

Press, 1 September 1980, Page 14

Appeal against land sale unsuccessful

PA Wellington The controversy over the sale of Coromandel farmland to Prince Nawaf, of Saudi Arabia, ' flared up again when a petition deploring the action was reported back to Parliament with no recommendation. .The petition of Mr Alan Wallbank of Gisborne and 15,526 others asking for a ban on the sale of farmland to foreign nationals was considered by the Lands and Agriculture Select Commit? tee.

The committee chairman, (Mr L. C. Schultz) said the petition was “a, blatant example of cheap political tactics by the Opposition.” It was unfortunate that

most of the people who signed the petition had believed it to be genuine,. he said.'

Mr Schultz suggested the petition had been put together with the help of the Labour Party organisation — a suspicion which he said was heightened by the Labour Party cards on the top of every pile of signatures. The petition was an abuse of the right to petition Parliament and to report it back with no recommendation was to treat it kindly, he said. ,

But the Labour shadow Minister of Agriculture (Sir Basil Arthur) denied the petition was an Opposition ploy, and said it stemmed from a flood of personal calls to Mr Wallbank.