FARMERS AND COSTS

Greymouth Evening Star, 11 August 1936, Page 5

FARMERS AND COSTS

PRICE INFLATION URGED.

[PER PRESS ASSOCIATION.]

MASTERTON, August 10.

Addressing a gathering of farmers this afternoon, the Dominion president of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union, Mr W. W. Mulholland, strongly criticised the policy of inflating wage and other costs without at the same time inflating the prices of agricultural products so as to bring them into reasonable relationship with costs.

Mr Mulholland urged that it was imperative to-day as it had never been before for farmers io get together in their own interests and those of the community generally and to urge the Government to complete the policy on which it went to the country. Mr Mulholland said the Government had gone to the country on a policy of artificial inflation, as opposed to the policy by which the preceding Government reduced costs and brought these into reasonable relationship with the prices of agricultural products. The present Government, however, had got the wrong foot first. If it had firs* inflated prices, inflation of wage and other costs would have followed naturally. It had inflated costs without inflating prices and so had re-estab-lished, though on a higher price level, the conditions of 1931—the disparity between prices and costs which had led to the slump. There was no question of going back on the policy of the last six months. Farmers, if they were to escape being ground down by those sections of the community compulsorily organised, must unite in doing everything to complete its policy by inflating prices and bringing them into conformity with cost s.

Mr Mulholland condemned tile heavy increase in company taxation. It was indirect taxation which would be passed on to consumers and, therefore, was totally at variance with the professed policy of the Labour party. He contended that in its reintroduction of the graduated land tax the Government had taken no account of the positirn of the sheep farmer who necessai. . . .. much larger area

of land than did the dairy farmer. Particularly in the South Island considerable areas of grazing land could not be worked under the taxation now imposed.

HOMELAND FARMERS’ PROTEST. (Received August 11,11 a.m.) LONDON, August 10. Stressing the need to protect British farmers against the dumping of surplus New Zealand dairy products, the National Farmers’ Union points out to the British Government that guaranteed prices for New Zealand cheese and butter exceed the present London market prices, and the average in recent years. DEPARTMENT’S REJOINDER WELLINGTON, August 11. When the British National Farmers Union protest to the British Government against, the dumping of surplus New Zealand dairy produce in Britain was referred to the Primary Products Marketing Department, it was pointed out by the Department that the guaranteed purchase price of butter of 12 9-16 pence f.o.b. was equal to the London price of 10G/G and the London market price of butter to-day was 118/-, so that the guaranteed price could be said to be 11/6 below the present London value. In the case of cheese the guaranteed purchase price of 6 13-16 pence f.o.b. was

equal to the London price of 61/3. The London market price of cheese to-day was 64/- so the guaranteed price for cheese was 2/9 cwt. lower than the present London market value.