DAIRY CONTROL

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 15 June 1927, Page 5

DAIRY CONTROL

RECENT CONTROVERSY.

STATEMENTS BY CHAIRMAN...

CHALLENGED BY MR. PATERSON

(.BY TELEGRAPH—PRESS ASSOCIATION.) WELLINGTON, June 14. Messrs Morison, Smith and Morison, solicitors for. Mr. Stronach Paterson, late Government representative on the London agency of the New Zealand Dairy Produce Control Board, to-day forwarded the following letter to Mr. William Grounds, chairman of the New Zealand Dairy Produce Export Control Board: “Dear Sir, —We write to you as solicitors for and under instructions fiom Mr. Stronach Paterson, until lately New Zealand Government representative on the London agency* of your board. Mr. Paterson has had brought under his notice various ,New Zealand newspapers, including the “New Zealand Dairy Produce Exporter” of March 26 last, containing what purports to- be your version of the history of Mr Paterson's actions in his capacity as Government representative.

“You were, of course, aware at the time when vou made your attack upon Mr Paterson that even if he desired to reply it was impossible for him to do so for a period of at least several weeks. To reply in detail now, after such a lapse of time, is obviously of very little use, particularly because such a reply might well give rise to further controversy, and again Mr. Paterson’s reply to you could not, by reason of his absence in England, he published until the lapse of many weeks after the publication of' your own’ statement.

“‘Mr. Paterson, therefore, does not consider it necessary or desirable that he should at this stage enter into, a discussion of the merits or demerits of price-fixation of dairy produce in London. That issue, he points out to us, is already settled, unfortunately at the expense of New Zealand in general and New Zealand dairy farmers in particular. “Nor does Mr. Paterson regard it as his concern, at the- moment,. to answer what he regards as specious propaganda by yourself and some of your supporters, whose policy has brought the actual results achieved by price-fixation to' the dairy industry of New Zealand and the interests of the Dominion as a whole; but it is his concern, and it is for that purpose that this "letter is written, to repudiate what he regards as your gross misrepresentation of his actions as New Zealand Government representative on the London agency of the Control Board, and in that connection Sir. Paterson would welcome the opportunity, before a Royal Commission or other appropriate tribunal appointed to inquire into reasons for the failure of the board’s policy of absolute control and price-fixing, , of having his own actions fully investigated. “Mr. Paterson also desires ns to remind you thfft while you were in london you had several conversations with him under a clear and definite pledge of strict confidence on both sides He desires us to point out that, for the purposes of your attack upon him, you have not hesitated to refer freely to those conversations. In his [ view, your attack contains some complete misstatements of fact, it distorts and misrepresents both his confidential conversations with you and the general aims and effect of his work, and it insinuates responsibility on his part for many happenings with which he was in no way concerned. „ . “It would be useless to attempt to carry matters further at this stage because, as we have already said, Mr. Paterson is still in London, and is un'able, by reason of his absence, to continue the controversy with you now; but lie expects to be back in New Zealand not later, than October, and' if you then desire any public investigation such as that, for example, which would be afforded by a Royal Commission, into the affairs of the Control Board and the true history of the actions of its chairman and. certain of its members, and of himself as Governmen fc representative on the London agency, and into the real causes of what he alleges are the disastrous results of the board’s policy, we assure vou that. Mr. Paterson will be delighted to join with you in endeavouring to have such an : investigation brought about.

“In view of the fact that your attacks on Mr. Paterson have been of the most public character, we are instructed to hand copies of this letter to the newspaper press, and -we care accordingly adopting that course.” Interviewed to-night on the matter, the chairman of the Dairy Control Board (Mr. W. Grounds) made the following comment. “There has been no misrepresentation and no misstatement of fact, and if a commission of inquiry could remove the harm that has been done I would gladly welcome it; hut the damage can never be re-, paired. I shall be prepared for the fullest investigation at any time.”