Value of farm aid doubted

Press, 10 August 1985, Page 2

Value of farm aid doubted

Wellington reporter Selective assistance by the Rural Bank to a small group of farmers was like “trying to put a bush fire out with a bucket of water,” said the Opposition’s associate spokesman on agriculture, Mr Rob Storey (Waikato). He is a former Dominion president of Federated Fanners. Mr Storey was referring to the announcement yesterday by the Minister of Agriculture, Mr Moyle, that the three groups of farmers most likely to be in financial trouble would be helped. These farmers were those who were newly settled, on special settlements, or had undertaken extensive development work in the last five years.

Mr Storey said a heavy and totally unfair responsibility was placed on staff of the Rural Bank to define which farmers had a viable long-term future. Those who were lucky would have their interest rates frozen — those who were not would be forced off their farms. The Government had ignored the problems of farmers who had financed largely outside the Rural Bank, but who faced even higher interest rates. The measures announced were a token gesture that did little for the great majority of farmers, who faced a year of unprecedented economic hardship, caused largely by the Government’s unbalanced economic changes, Mr Storey said.