Greymouth Evening Star. AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16th., 1934. RE-ORGANISING INDUSTRIES.

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 November 1934, Page 6

Greymouth Evening Star. AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16th., 1934. RE-ORGANISING INDUSTRIES.

are so often called upon to say something when they really have nothing to say, that it is not .surprising they frequently resort to platitudes, pointing out already known ills rather than suggesting probable remedies. Mr. Coates, in his address to the conference of the New Zealand Manufacturers ’ Federation, this week, followed these familiar lines, the only departure from the expected being his claim that the Government was not in favour of control of industries, and his inferred support of a shorter working-week. He urged a co-ordination of industries, a policy which the conference delegates themselves later approved. The Federation Council is to submit a scheme, and these proposals will be awaited with interest.

Few will doubt there is scope for re-organisation and probably amalgamation. The present system of many small factories makes for excessive overhead cost, which has to' be passed on to the consumers, this being a handicap to export and home trading. New Zealand must develop her secondary industries if the unemployment problem is to be solved, and it would seem that increase in population is essential to obtain the necessary larger market for New Zealand manufactures. There cannot be much hope for expansion abroad, seeing that most other lands are better placed than New Zealand is, for the production and sale of manufactured goods. It is interesting to note that Britain, herself, is tackling a similar problem as now faces Dominion

manufacturers, and a campaign has been started in favour of planned self-control of each industry, with adequate organisation to prevent wasteful competition. It is claimed that Britain’s industrial productive capacity is now greatly beyond present and potential demand, and that the beggar-my-neighbour policy will lead to the ruin of all. Sir Felix Pole, chairman of the Associated Electrical Industries, recently declared : ‘ ‘ The Government had given the coal industry a Charter, whereby production and prices could be controlled by a central organisation of the trade. In agriculture the milk, pig, and other marketing schemes were working to a similar end by differ-1 ent means. So far, however, little had been done to organise manu-' factoring industries. The result

, was that productive capacity was ' st ill being increased unnecessarily in many directions, coupled with severe price cutting.” He added i that there was no likelihood of a ; return to free trade, ‘ ‘ Industrial nationalism was characteristic of the world, and even our own Dominions would pay substantially higher prices for goods manufae 1 tured locally. This must be regarded as a permanent feature of future trade conditions.” He outlined a scheme of controlled industries, providing that “manufacturers of particular kinds of merchandise or apparatus should be registered, and the executive of each association should be a controlling body, responsible for regulating productive capacity, deciding how unnecessary productive capacity should be disposed of, fixing a profitable and reasonable level of prices; and generally dealing with all problems affecting the industry, with statutory power to enforce the decision of the preponderating majority.” Time will be required to consider the merits and weaknesses of this and similar schemes. One thing has long been certain; namely, that the problem is becoming increasingly difficult, and the lands which ignore it, are storing worse troubles.