Farmers unhappy at carry-on help

Press, 28 April 1989, Page 16

Farmers unhappy at carry-on help

The Government’s drought relief package for South Island farmers does not contain sufficient assistance for farmers affected by the twin problems of high debt and drought, Federated Farmers have claimed.

The carry-on finance scheme was this week described as unworkable by delegates to the April meeting of the North Canterbury federation’s provincial executive. Financiers had shown little enthusiasm for the scheme and delegates were not aware of any farmers who had successfully applied for carry-on assistance. But the meeting stopped short of rejecting the scheme. A remit from the Darfield branch calling for the rejection of the Government’s drought package was left to lie on the table until the next meeting when the progress of the scheme could be better assessed. The president, Mr Ness Wright, said the drought package ignored several points necessary for farmers to survive the crisis. The package assistance did not go far enough.

Farmer representatives had given an undertaking when the package was announced that the assistance measures would be given a chance to work. ‘lt is my firm belief, after a month, that the package will not work,” said Mr Wright. Modifications to the package’s details were necessary so financiers could apply a more liberal interpretation. If it was modified sufficiently, the package might work, but time was running out for many farmers. He urged the Minister of Agriculture, Mr Moyle, to consider immediately changing details of the package. The carry-on finance assistance would help only a few farmers under the present guidelines. Mr Wright suggested it would be better if the Government considered an immediate cash injection to farmers of the $36 million avail-

able in the carry-on scheme. The farming presidents from the four drought areas — North Canterbury, Mid-Canter-bury, South Canterbury and North Otago — will meet early next week to discuss another approach to the Government on drought relief. Mr Wright said the Government had not yet realised the seriousness of the drought. The Ministry of Agriculture and the federation are conducting another survey of the drought’s effects on North Canterbury farms. The survey will follow up the position indicated in a similar survey in January. The M.A.F. hopes to gather information by telephone from 20 per cent of farmers in the North Canterbury area. The survey will concentrate on assessing the stock feed position.