Farmer paints black picture of economy

Press, 28 May 1981, Page 3

Farmer paints black picture of economy

The president of the North Canterbury branch of Federated Farmers, Mr A. L. Mulholland, yesterday appealed to the non-farming people of New Zealand to support farmers. He said at the annual meeting of the branch that the economy appeared to be completely out of control. Relativity was the “in” word and productivity was a thing of the past. Wage demands went on and on with no thought given to their effect on the economy. Farmers had set a goal to increase production but to achieve that they would need co-operation and help from the rest of the community. A confident and profitable farming industry would generate business and additional employment. The “Agrdw” campaign had tried to impress on nonfarming people the farming' industry's ability to overcome New Zealand’s economic problems.

Mr Mulholland said, “The message we have tried to convey is that farmers can and will increase production but to do this the industry will need solid support from the community.”

It was “incredible” that the Arbitration Court should

grant a general wage order, while at the same time trade unions sought pay increases independently, perpetuating the ratchet of rising inflation.

“I. believe that many of oilr labour force do a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay. But on the other hand, because of a combination of union muscle and inept management, others in our workforce are being paid far beyond their worth.” he said. “I wonder how the average wage-earner would react if he found himself in the situation of the Canterbury farmer, particularly those in the coastal strip, who have until the last few days had only 125 mm of rain since last August.

“Incomes on these, farms will be drastically reduced. Their stock will take months to recover. ..Next spring’s lambing will be lower, wool weights will be lighter, and all this with a 20 per cent plus rise in costs. How too would the protected cost-plus industries react?”

Mr Mulholland also criticised the Federation of Labour’s ban on trade with Chile. He said that the ban achieved nothing. The Chileans simply bought from

other countries what they could have bought from New Zealand and New Zealand was the only loser. One of the big tragedies of recent times had been the

failure of the Government, when elected in 1975, to, take a hard line in straightening up the economy. The Government had been swept back into power at that time with an overwhelming mandate to do just that but “they blew it.” The vice-chairman of the meat and wool section of the branch, Mr R. W. Davison, said that with a 52 per cent increase in costs in the last two years overseas prices for farm produce could not match internal costs. . If inflation in New Zealand

continued at a higher level than in countries where New Zealand sought to sell its produce, farmers would eventually go bankrupt. Mr J. H. M. Dawson (Waimairi) criticised New Zealand’s floating exchange rate, which is intended to protect exporters against

internal inflation. He said that the extent of the adjustment was too small. In the last year the devaluation should perhaps have been 20 per cent but it had only been about 6 per cent.