DEAR BREAD

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 104, 29 October 1925, Page 8

DEAR BREAD

TO IDE EDITOR,

Sir,—l have read with a good deal of interest tho letter over the signature of Mr. P. R. Corson, chairman of directors of Distributors, Ltd., which appeared in your issue o£ Wednesday.

Mr. Corson does not dispute the accuracy of my figures, but endeavours by ringing in additional details to minimise the effect. Let us come down to basic facts. .There are 53 grain mills in New Zealand mostly ,n the South Island, em1r j #'- m lm}X ls ' ™th il wa Se payment ol £160,013. To protect these C7O men and their wages the people of New Zealand are called upon to pay a super-tax on bread equti to roughly 3'Al per twopound loaf The price of Hour is fixed by the millers, and no doubt Mr. Corson lias had a pretty big .say in fixing the price—that price is £13 10s per ton 1.0.v. at (southern ports, less 2/* per cent, discount, which makes the not price approximately £18. This price has been approved by tho Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. Mr. Nosworthy on behalf of the Government, and this approval means in effect that the flourmillers have the legal right to profiteer on the public. The millers having this right, the right of fixing the price of bread could not be denied to the bakers and so we in Wellington are compelled to pay 8d per 21b loaf, according to my own bread bill paid during this month, while the consumers in London have since the 32th instant been paying 9d per 41b loaf.

The jfuquity of the whole thing lies in the fact that the poor man has to pay the same price for his bread as the rich man, whether the quality is good or bad. This falls with uncommon severity on the workers, especially those with families, for'bread and butter form their staple article of diet. I do not believe in the history of New Zealand we have had such a political scandal as this brazen exhibition ot protecting vested interests, and it is clear to me that it must be always a dangerous thing to have as a Minister ot .Agriculture a representative of a wheat-growing electorate.- In my opinion the admission of Mr. Nosworthy into the Cabinet was very unfortunate in this respect. So close ami determined is the protection accorded this vested interest that the import of-wheat is under tho control of the Government, and a merchant cannot import wheat or flour from Australia or elsewhere without first obtaining the consent of the Minister of Agriculture.

And as further evidence of this determination, the duty on wheat, which before tliq war was Od per cental, or 15s a ton, is now 2s 6d per cental, or £2 10s a ton (an increase o£ 233 1-3 per cent.), whilst the duty on flour, which before the war was Is per cental, or £1 per ton, is now 3s per cental, or £3 per ton, plus 3s primage, an increase of 215 per cent. '

Wuit is the .lustification for imposiiiß this stiißgeriiig bread tax on the unfoi--tiiniitc workers of this 'country? Obviously to protect the flour-millers.—l am etc., 20th October.