Electricity, L.P.G. for S.I.

Press, 3 August 1981, Page 6

Electricity, L.P.G. for S.I.

Parliamentary reporter

The “alternative fuels” for the South Island were electricity and liquefied petroleum gas, the Minister of Energy (Mr Birch) said at a panel discussion yesterday which opened the National Party conference at Wellington to questions from the floor.

He was told by a delegate that the South Island was said to be disadvantaged because it had no alternative fuel in the way that the North Island had compressed natural gas.

Mr Birch said that’ the South Island had big quantities of electricity, and that this was available at a price reduction of 25 per cent to all South Island industries. The concession was granted for ; “good, sound economic reasons,” and the policy was working, he said.

L.P.G. would be made available to South Island ports at the same price as at North Island ports. It would take about two years to “get this policy moving” but the L.P.G. would be available to the South Island motorist. On the economic sense of producing expensive synthetic petrol when C.N.G.. was a cheaper alternative, Mr Birch said that C.N.G. was a sensible alternative only for motorists close to pipelines and driving more than 15,000 km a year. Synthetic petrol would supply “all other New Zealand motorists,” he said.

A West Coast delegate asked if the Mining Amendment Bill would be subject to the Town and Country Planning Act. Mr Birch replied that the caucus had looked carefully at such a proviso, but decided it was “not ap-

propriate in all mining cases.”

However, mining applications would be subject to local body supervision and strong environmental procedures, once the bill was passed. They would also be subject to appeal to the Planning Tribunal. Delegates asked questions of a panel of nine Cabinet Ministers for 45 minutes. Other questions and answers were:-

• Have fears been founded that local authorities and environmental groups have lost rights in the applL cation of the National Development Act? The Minister of National Development (Mr Birch) replied that an O.E.C.D. environmental review team in New Zealand after the tribunal hearing on the Taranaki methanol plant said that such fears were “largely unfounded.” t-

The act had not changed the law, Mr Birch said, but had brought together existing law, strengthened rights of environmentalists, and given the Commission for the Environment a statutory right to participate. Although it put pressure on local

authorities and environmentalists to make decisions in a short time, this was in the nation’s interest.

@ Does the Government favour selling or leasing an existing television channel to private enterprise, or establishing a third?

The Minister of Broadcasting (Mr Cooper) replied that public opinion seemed to favour private sector time on one of the existing channels. The Broadcasting Council had authority to. put to tender 31 hours of private sector time in the mornings seven days a week. It was “up to private enterprise to make a go of it on an existing channel,” Mr Cooper said.

® When would the Government allow sharing of matrimonial property at death without duty, in the same way property was shared at divorce without duty?

The Minister of Justice (Mr McLay) said the Government was “investigating the principles involved” and would introduce legislation next year. It was a difficult proposition, balancing off the right of individuals to dispose of property in a will

as seen fit, and revenue collection. • Was it Government policy to save money by shifting people out of job creation schemes on to the dole?

The Minister of Labour (Mr Bolger) replied: Absolute nonsense.

SIBM allocated to job creation schemes had not been used by employers.

® Was the claim that New Zealand was “split right down the middle” because of the Springbok tour a malicious exaggeration? The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) • replied: The tour has created a difficulty. I don’t want to see the difficulty continue, and it is a grave mistake to emphasise it.

© Would the boat tax be removed?

Mr Templeton replied that the boat industry accepted the tax as reasonable on a leisure industry.

Exceptions applied to companies exporting. Pressure to reduce taxes was coming from every field. Tax was necessary.

® Do sales tax and import duty on C.N.G. and L.P.G. conversion kits raise the cost of conversions by 50 per cent?

Mr Birch said'that sales duty and import tax of about $l2OO applied on each kit. In the case of C.N.G. this was remitted in the $2OO conversion grant increased on concessions to L.P.G.