PAUPERISED

Grey River Argus, 17 September 1934, Page 7

PAUPERISED

N.Z. COAL INDUSTRY Mr Webb’s Fight for Oil Duty (Our Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, September 15. During the discu.-'sion of the Customs Bill in the House last night. Mr P. O. Webb pointed out that owing -to the falling off of work on the Blackball coal fields, the miners were unab'.e t" re-iii. ure their 'homes. At present they could just about earn relief wages, and as the insurance r fell out. the Companies would not renew, feeling that the town was decadent. Some of the miners had been on the field for forty years, and had spent all their money in getting homes of their own, and they were now unable to get insurance on them. The coal industry was being papuerisedj because of the heavy importations of fuel oil and the low coal freight rates from Australia. The gas works at Invercarg'ill and at Wanganui were now buying their coal from Australia, finding that it was more profitaide. The Dominion’s coal industry wa.-f diifiting int<* a deplorable '••ondi t'ion. and he failed to understand why the fuel oil was pennitited to come in without a heavy duty. The taxation derived from that source could be utilised to help some other important industry ? or. be’rter still, in making provision for 'the unemployed. The < n’y :-.lterna.tive he could see to protecting

the coal-mining industry was to provide the miner.- with work elsewhere than 'in the mines, and. so enable them to live decently. The children of these miners were denied secondary

education, .ns the warenits vould not afford to send them down to ge-t it, and

young boys and girls were unable to obtain work. Something should be done lo protect the coal-mining indutr\\ and he urged the Minister tha't the State Fire Office should be instructed to accept insurance risks so that the- miners would not be turned adrift iiiiid their life savings sacrificed in '.-.•iso of fire. Mr Webb .'•'aid he had received letters from various branches of the Farmers’ Union oil the West Coast, requesting him to urge the Minister not 4o allow oil-burning machines to be imported free of duty. Coal-burn-i’ig maeh'.ines were subject to a duty of 2(l‘ per cent, and this duty should be removed, becau.-e ! :hese imichiueS c.ousumed x the coal that was produ -ed in New Zealand, was carried '..ver the railways, and was shipped to cli.'Tcrent ports,, involving t'hc employmen ‘ of many men from the time that it. left the mine fill it reached ; the consumer. On the other hand, the crude oil was pioduved in foreign countries, and was allowed to be imported Tree of duty, In earlier days, the present Minister of Mines had urged that one ■ f the best mrnins of raising revenue was by taxa* tion on this nil fuel. With so rmi-ny farmers in the House, it was an easy matter to rai.u* a discussion urging the further nrotection of t'hc interests of the farmers' of the Dominion, and, in making sul'h re] resen.t:itions ) the farm. 1 ing representaltives received the support of the members sent t the House by the- mining con-’tituencies, but when any 'taxation was desired for the protection of the miners and the mining industry, '(he farming representatives and the Minister turned a deni' ear. At present the miners of the Dominion were receiving small wages, ami wore working short time, and he was disgusted With the Government’s treatment- of the mining industry. The present Government had assisted the farming industry in all sorts of ways, but if- would do nothing to h p l|-. the miners. If 10,000 wheat growers were entitled to assistance by way of duties surely the 5,001) miners in the country were justified in asking for meaisures which would improve their industry. If this industry were represented by a voting population of 100,000. it would be taken seriously hint the dav would come when a Govemnent would reach the Treasury Benches wh.ici. would be pleased to have the supporlt of the miners, ;i nd would do justice t. > their industry whiUh had playe 1 such, an important part in the development of the country. No industrial nation had prospered which had failed Ifo foster thp development of its coal and iron resources but in New Zealand the production of coal ami iron was of no moment to the Government. If the Government was not prepared to protect the mining industry, it should provide work for th use miners who were compelled, through lack of work. t< • leave the coalfields and >eek employment 'in other industries.