WHEAT CONTROL

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 19, 23 January 1926, Page 6

WHEAT CONTROL

TRADES HALL INQUIRY

THE CONSUMER'S INTERESI

NEW POLICY CRITICISED.

(BT TELEGRAPH.—PRESS ASSOCIATION.)

CHRISTCHUBCH, This Day.

A statement embodying the views of the Trades Hall Wheat Prices Committee finds "That the so-called 'free market' and 'no control' policy is merely a new method of control which will be more disastrous to the consumer than the previous method, and may eventually be less satisfactory to the wheat growers."

A copy of the statement referred to in the above telegram has been received by "The Post" from the chairman of the Wheat Prices Committee, Mr. J. M< Combs, Trades Hall, Christchurch. This is a committee appointed to consider the wheat question from the consumers' point of view. After recording the finding quoted in the telegram, the report proeeeda:—

"Under the new arrangements a heavy duty will be reimpoaed and the bread consumers and poultry farmers will have to pay an additional £500,----000 in order that the wheat growers may have a very risky gamble in which they may win or lose £100,000. "The problem is a little complicated, but the former Minister of Agricnlture _ (the Hon. Mr. Nosworthy) knew what he was about when, in the interests of the wheat growers, and in order not to unnecessarily burden the consumers, he secured from the millers—for the wheat growers—prices which were (lightly better than could be obtained in competition with duty-paid Australian wheat. Thus did the wheat growers get the full benefit of the duty and a little more. The millers in return got Government imported wheat free of duty, and thus were enabled to keep down the price of flour and bread. THE FARMERS 1 PROPOSAL. "The price of Canterbury wheat will now be controlled by North Island importation parity; in other words, Canterbury wheat sent to Auckland will have to compete against dry Australian wheat shipped direct from Sydney to Auckland. The May agreement having been broken, the millers will naturally buy when and where they like in the market that suits them best, and under those circumstances the most that the farmers can expect is an additional sixpence a bushel for wheat,'but there if) the possibility of them getting less than the agreed-upon May prices. The New Zealand crop it estimated to yield 4,000,000 bushels, or just about half our requirements; an additional sixpence will mean £100,000 to the wheat growers, but a reduction of sixpence for reasons already stated might mean a loss of £100,000. "On the other hand, and this Is where the consumer is being hard hit, under the new so-called free market 4,000,000 bushels will have to be imported on which duty has to be paid. The bread consumer will have to pay an additional penny for the fourpound loaf. We use 140,g00 tons of flour per annum, each ton representing 6SO loaves. The additional cost to the bread consumer will therefore be £400,000. The poultry farmers say they use two and a half million bushels, and the additional cost to them will be over £100,000. Therefore, in order that the wheat growers may indulge in the risky gamble in which they may win or lose £100,000, the rest of the community will have to pay £500,000. The State will, of course, reap an additional £250,000 by way of Customs duties. BREAD WILL BE DEARER. "The one certain Tesult of the Government's new policy is that the consumers, including the farmers, will have to pay an increased price for bread. The poultry industry will also suffer. It is quite evident that the Hon. Mr. Nosworthy, who understood the problem from A to Z, has been over-ridden in this matter by our new, inexperienced, and impetuous Prime Minister, and a new Minister of Agriculture has been appointed who knows nothing, about the wheat question. It remains to be seen whether the wheat growers who have been abusing Mr. Nosworthy will gain or lose as the result of the new method of control. A market controlled by a heavy duty is hardly a 'free market.' There is something radically wrong when the pries of bread in London is IOJd and in New Zealand Is Id to Is 3d, with the prospect of going still higher. It is time we had 'Corn Laws' to protect the consumers.

"The alacrity shown by the Prime Minister in acceding to the request of the wheat growers, contrasts very strikingly with his refusal last session to pass legislation to «nabje the Arbitration Court to give effect to its decision to grant the workers pie additional penny to meet the further increase in the cost of living. The Government also showed great alacrity in increasing the rate of interest for loans from the Advances Department, the result being that all the big lending institutions have been enabled to increase their interest rates by from 1 to li per cent. This will eventually mean to the borrowers an additional burden of three and a half millions p_er annum in interest. Thus have the real interests of the small farmer been sacrificed and the cost of living further increased. Bents must go up as "