ROAD TRANSPORT

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23487, 26 October 1939, Page 10

ROAD TRANSPORT

RESTRICTIONS RETAINED NO NATIONALISATION ASSURANCE BY MR. SEMPLE [BY TELEGRAPH —PRESS ASSOCIATION] CHRISTCHURCH, Wednesday "No. The co-ordination of transport will go on," replied the Minister of Transport, the Hon. It. Semple, when he was asked to-day whether the removal of petrol restrictions would mean relaxation of the economy measures recently introduced for road . transport operators. The measures, said Mr. Semple, were not entirely due to the war, but were necessary in peace time. There would be no undue restrictions, but the whole of the transport system would be investigated by the committees set up and now at work. "The idea is to get complete coordination to prevent waste, unnecessary running and unfair competition," the Minister said. "That will go on to the maximum. It is a question of the common sense policy of the rationalisation of transport. Some irresponsible persons have been broadcasting in a secret kind of way that this set toward co-ordination means State ownership ultimately. It means nothing of the kind. We are quite content to allow private enterprise to do the job, but we do want to assist the industry to bring about that measure of co-ordi-nation which is necessary in the interests of the transport people themselves and the interests of the nation, in that it will create an efficient transport system. The objective is coordination, which ultimately means real efficiency, and I want to squash the infamous falsehood that this is a step toward nationalisation. It is nothing of the kind." The Government, the Minister said, had interfered with services in direct competition with the railways a dozen times. He had said and the Prime Minister had also said that apart from that competition with the railways the Government was quite satisfied and happy to leave the whole business in the hands of private enterprise.