IRON AND STEEL

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 90, 13 October 1938, Page 11

IRON AND STEEL

REASONS LACKING

CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE CRITICAL

Strong dissatisfaction with the refusal of the Minister of Industries and Commerce to acquaint the public fully with the reasons why the Government had insisted on taking authority for the iron and steel industry to be conducted as a State enterprise, was expressed at a meeting yesterday of the executive of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of New Zealand.

It was reported that correspondence with the Minister on the subject had been going on for some time. In March, following the passage of the Iron and Steel Industry Act, the association had written the Minister stating that it was still greatly concerned at the State engaging in an enterprise involving £5,000,000 of the taxpayers' money. In order : that the public should be given more information on the subject than had been made available, the association had urged that the Government make public all those reports in its possession relating to the possibilities and the operation of the industry in New Zealand.

The Minister had replied that he was not prepared.to recommend the Government to have the reports published, but he said that if there was any particular information in regard to the industry that the? association desired, he would ascertain whether the details could be obtained. PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW. The association had thanked the Minister for his offer, but had expressed the opinion that as the subject was of great importance to the whole of the people, the whole of the people should be made acquainted with the particulars. It was pointed out that the law of the country required such, reports, as those by Brassert and Company to be available to persons interested when industries were- being established under the Companies Act, and that there appeared to be no good reason why the Government, when it established an industry, should be exempt from the provisions which applied in all other cases. ■-.•.

To this,: the Minister replied that nb step was being taken * under? the Act without a thorough investigation being made. "It surely "must be patent to your executive that all of the results of the individual investigations and surveys that have, beeh, and are being, made could not be published," said the Minister, "and to issue Brassert's reports without personal explanations and the results of departmental officers' investigations would be inadequate and would quite possibly lead to incorrect conclusions." The' Minister repeated his offer to investigate the possibility of giving the association any - particular information it might desire.

The association rejoined by making the request that the additional particulars on the whole project, if not already documented, should be documented and released for publication along with the report of Brassert and Company. Such a procedure, it: was contended, would enable the whole subject to be viewed in the comprehensive perspective which the Minister pointed out'as.being necessary. It was further reported, however, that no progress could be made with the Minister in the matter.

The view was expressed by the meeting that while the careful survey the Government was making of the ore deposits was to be commended, and while no capital expenditure had been entered into, there was a call liar bility on the taxpayers of £5,000,000, and the people were entitled to the details of the expert reports on which the decision to launch such a great State enterprise was based.