BOARD OF TRADE ACT

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 250, 18 July 1931, Page 13

BOARD OF TRADE ACT

Traders Want Repeal DEAD REGULATIONS (Associated Chambers of Commerce of New Zealand.) Under the Board of Trade Act, 1919, and the Board of Trade Amendment Act, 1925, the Minister of Industries and Commerce is empowered, 'in many and various ways, to harass and persecute competent, honest, and law-abiding citizens of almost and every calling. For instance, he is empowered, among other things, to (1) hold a judicial inquiry or make an investigation into any matter whatsoever relating to any trade, business, profession or undertaking whatsoever, carried on for profit, for the purpose of obtaining information to control such trade, business profession, or undertaking. Such judicial inquiry or investigation must be conducted in private, but the Minister may publish anything lie likes concerning it, and if in so doing he publicly libels or defames any person, such person is denied any remedy. (2) Make regulations (via the. Governor-General-in-Council) for the control in any way that he deems necessary of any tradej business, or profession or undertaking whatsoever carried on for profit. (3) Make regulations (via the Governor-General-in-Council) for the establishment of maximum or minimum prices, or rates for any classes of goods or services except wages or remuneration or employees. ■ “Ridiculous Restrictions.” These Acts further extend some objectionable provisions of the Commercial Trusts Act by applying to ai.y and every person some of the ridiculous restrictions applied by the Commercial Trusts Act to a large body of traders. The Associated Chambers of Commerce and other commercial bodies have made repeated efforts to have these iniquitous Acts purged from the Statute Book. The last Reform Government, elected on the slogan “less Government in business.” promised repeal of the objectionable portions of the Act. It is understood that legislation to give effect to this promise was prepared hut. it was never brought before Parliament. The United Government owed its election in part to its pre-election promises to remove restrictions from private enterprise, and its Leader, the late Sir Joseph Ward, categorically promised repeal of the Board of Trade Acts in the 1929 session of Parliament. No definite promise has been given by the present Prime Minister to repeal these Acts, but in June, 1930, Mr. Forbes received representa- . tions on the subject very' sympathetically. The Minister of Internal Affairs (atid Industries and. Commerce). Hon. P,. A. de la Perrelle. however, promised the Associated Chambers of Commerce at its annual conference in October, 1930, that at the next regular session of Parliament these measures would be dealt with in a manner that would be acceptable to the commercial community. The time is now ripe for fulfilment of this promise. ' Dead Regulations. When repeal of these Acts has been under discussion with Ministers of the Crown it has been suggested that the Acts Could not be repealed in toto because of the continued necessity of certain regulations made by Order-in-Coun-cil under these Acts, Regulations by 1 Order-in-Council are now so utterly befogging that it is impossible for commercial minds to keep tally. of them; but careful investigation leads the Associated'Chambers of Commerce to believe that the only regulations under these Acts that arc to-day in any sense “alive” are (1) regulations of January, 1925. re offerings of wool by auction, and (2) regulations of various dates dealing with the gas industry. Regulations (.1) above., if. they ever were necessary; are no longer, so. and if the Board of Tni.le Acts wore repealed the offerings of wool at auction would continue to be regulated ns at present. Regulations (2) above have no right

or reason to exist as regulations b.v Or-der-iu-Couneil at all. If the ' gas in-, dustry requires regulations, that should be effected b.v separate legislative enactment and not b.v a general Act. Legislation by Order-in-Council bids fair-to become as acute a public nuisance as even the Commercial Trusts Act or Board of Trade Act. The Associated Chambers of Commerce asks the present Government to honour its pledges to remove restrictions on private enterprise by completely removing, from the Statute Book these intolerable. Acts which now have no justification for continued existence.