MINISTER DENIES THAT BRAN ALLOCATIONS HAD POLITICAL IMPLICATION

Evening Star, Issue 26155, 17 July 1947, Page 10

MINISTER DENIES THAT BRAN ALLOCATIONS HAD POLITICAL IMPLICATION

(Special.) WELLINGTON. July 17. A denial that in the allocation of bran he had taken it from Southland for the politically favourable West Coast farmers was made by the Minister of Agriculture, Mr E. L. Cullen, last night in the House of (Representatives. He did* not believe that the member for Awarua, Mr G. 11. Herron, really meant that he had refused to give assistance to electorates represented by tlie National Party, the Minister said. Southland was a very beautiful and productive part of New Zealand, and this was the first year in which it had made an application for bran for feeding purposes. There were certainly stocks of bran down there, but if there had been enough shipping lie would have had it brought, to the North Island for poultry keepers.. The West Coast of the South island had been receiving bran allocation' for years, because it could not provide fully for winter feed. However, the allocation was only at the rate of scwt per cow for the season. He had, he continued, released approximately 800 tons of bran to merchants in the South Island though if he could bring it to the North Island he would prefer to do so, because the West Coast and the North Island were certainly more in need of it.