IN THE COUNCIL

Evening Post, Volume XCVI, Issue 140, 10 December 1918, Page 4

IN THE COUNCIL

THE POWERS NECESSARY;

In moving the second ■ raiding of the Bill in the Legislative Council Sir cis Bell said that those concerned in the meat industry would think' v that guch enormous power given .to a. Minister should be curbed by Parliament. AH he could cay was that if the Minister had to give a Veason for refusing a, license the Bill would be useless. It could not bo supposed that a Minister for Agriculture, unless he were a lunatic, would exercise his powers unless he was convinced that the company was a member of or agent for the Meat Trust. The power required to be absolute, and the difficulty of proof was almost insuperable. He honestly believed that it waa necessary to give this power in order to guard against the trust making inroads in New Zealand. . •

Sir Walter Buchanan said the American Meat Trust now' operated!' in all commodities, to the detriment of both producers and consumers. It appeared' to him that the Government of New Zealand was powerless to prevent the trust obtaining the same stranglehold here without the assistance of the Imperial Government. The Smithfield, I market was largely in the hands of the trust, and though much might be done to counter the trust operations in New Zealand effective steps could be taken only with the help of the British Government. ■ He suggested thai the Government should have additional power to go into the offices and examine tho books with a view to finding out under which thimble the pea. was placed, Sir Francis Bell : We have thalfc power under the Commercial Trued Act now if we can only fin 3 where the books are. Sir Walter. Buchanan said'that he did not think there _ was sufficient power. For example, when he asked who was behind certain operators who were buying at good prices in New Zealand now the was told by innocent persons "the Bank of New Zealand." But it was not Bank of New Zealand money, it was American money. Was there power to examine the Bank books to see who was behind this? ■ The Hon. John Barr said Sir Walter Buchanan's' speech constituted an argument for a State Bank, and for control of the operations of combines in New Zealand, as * well as elsewhere. ' He hoped that the Government would go right ahead and control the combines here—in woollens, boots, and leather. Then there would be something effective done in regard to the cost of living. Tile Bill passed all , stagey without anjendment ' i <