EXPERTS IGNORED

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23145, 17 September 1938, Page 17

EXPERTS IGNORED

GOVERNMENT'S POLICY CRITICISM BY MR. HAMILTON FARMER LEFT WITH BURDEN OUTLOOK FOR THE FUTURE [llY TKI.KdKAI'U —-SI'KCIAL RI.I'OUTK u] W K LLING TON, Friday I "The Government is hoist with its ; own petard," said tin; Leader of the i Opposition, the Hon. A. Hamilton, in | a statement issued this evening eon- | corning the guaranteed prices for the current season, which were announced j in the House of Representatives today by the Minister of Marketing, the | Hon. W. Nash. | "If the position were not so serious !it would he almost ludicrous," Mr. Hamilton said. " The Government produced its socialistic commandeer scheme with an assurance of benevolent treatment for the dairy farmers and, in spite of warning notes sounded at the time, went blindly ahead in the belief that it could ignore world market conditions. Now the Minister of Marketing has admitted that world parity must be regarded as a determining factor. The Minister's Choice "He has had lo choose between a large delieit in the Dairy Industry Account and innumerable deficits in the accounts of dairy farmers arising from the high costs policy which his Government has deliberately pursued. In spite of all the flowery verbiage which the Minister put into the Primary Products .Marketing Act, the farmer is being left to carry the burden. " farmers may well feel amazed at the Minister's statement,' ' .Air. Hamilton continued. "An advisory committee was appointed some time ago, representing both the Government and the dairy industry, and its unanimous recommendation was that the basic guaranteed prices should be___ls.Gosd per lb. for butter and 8.770 d for cheese. In a manner reminiscent of his juggling with the social security figures of the British actuary, Mr. G. H. Maddex, the Minister has rejected the advice of experts and has arbitrarily reduced these figures to 1-1 .S9d and 8.-!2d respectively. "The advice of experts mean's nothing to Mr. Nash. His view is that the armchair Socialist planners in the Government know far more about farming problems than men who have spent their whole lives in close association with the dairy industry. Two Different Statements "There are now two different statements as to the working costs of the average efficient dairy farmer. One is the considered opinion of expert# based on a consideration of evidence and statistics, and one is the despairing cry of a Minister who lias to think ot' deficits running into millions before he can think of the dairy farmers—difficulties which he himself has helped to create.

"Kvon the Minister's figures cannot lie accepted ns accurate." Mr. Hamilton said. "We know how lie was forced to vary liis estimates from lime to time last year concerning: tlie possible surplus in the Dairy Industry Account. Now lie estimates a surplus of .L' 600,000 for the season just passed and uses this to predict a net estimated deficit of something over £900.000 at the end of the current season. In our view last season's surplus is likely to work out at something like £1,000,000 and this should provide for a corresponding reduction in the. net estimated deficit at the close of the present season.

"The Government's dilemma is purely and simply a result of Government action," Sir. Hamilton added. "The necessity for a correct balance between costs and prices has been ignored and as a result the Government has gone a long way toward destroying the economic equilibrium of the Dominion." Rising Labour Costs Another point mentioned by Mr. Hamilton was the possibility, amounting almost to a certainty, that higher labour costs would absorb a portion of the increase in the guaranteed price. "What of the future I'" Mr. Hamilton continued. "We realise that the dairy farmers want stability in their industry, in order to give the farmer that necessary degree of stability the National Party when it takes over the Treasury benches after the elections will honour all commitments which have been entered into by the Labour Government with regard to the current season's prices, while at the same time we will take immediate action to reduce farming costs.

"Our first step will be to return to the farmer the ownership of his own produce," Mr. Hamilton concluded. "The commandeer principle in the Primary Products Marketing Act will be entirely removed. We will then discuss with the dairy industry all matters relating to marketing and finance."

DETERMINING FACTOR OVERSEAS MARKET VALUES ORIGINAL POLICY ABANDONED [lir TELEGRAPH —FHKSB ASSOCIATION'] CHRISTCHURCH, Friday "The whole of Mr. Nash's statement, boiled down, means the complete abandonment of the pretence that the guaranteed price is other than one definitely related to the market price." said the Dominion president of the New Zealand Farmers' Union, 31 r. W. W. Miilholland, commenting 011 the Ministerial statement on the guaranteed price. "The argument that the price recommended by the committee would result in an unmanageable deficit in the Dairy Industry Account is an admission that the Government has no means by which to raise prices above the parity of the markets," he continued.