FOOD FOR BRITAIN

New Zealand Herald, Volume 82, Issue 25319, 28 September 1945, Page 9

FOOD FOR BRITAIN

LARGE GIFT SUGGESTED PRODUCE WORTH £20,000,000 A suggestion that a gift, in the form of regular shipments of butter, cheese and meat to the value of £10.000.000 a year for two years, should be made to Britain by New Zealand, Mas made by the chairman. .Mr J. T. Martin, at the annual meeting of Wright, Stephenson and Co., Ltd.. in Wellington. Such a spontaneous gift at this time of financial strain and food shortage would earn the gratitude of Britain." Mr Martin said. "We -would thus be following the splendid lead given by Canada, which in 1912 made Britain a gift of £200.000.000. and subsequently gave £100.000.000 free of interest. We could meet the expenditure by a special thank offering or gratuity loan of £10.000.000 each year, or make it a direct charge to the War Expenses Fund, which is estimated to amount to £105.000.000 this vear, against £130.000.000 last vear.

"In March the Government found that its Budget receipts had exceeded its expenditure by £10.000.000. and. as income taxation lias not boon reduced, and war expenditure is rapidly declining. it is a lair inference that by March. 1916, our surplus will have exceeded the Budget estimates by over £15.000.000: We are seemingly very solicitous about our own comforts, for in seven years we have increased our Social Security Fund from £10.750.000 to £22.750.000. the estimated budget for 1945-46. Let us show Britain that we are not. unmindful of our obligations, nor of 1" e debt we can never fully repay."

Mr Martin referred to the debt owed to Great Britain for her indomitable courage, determination and faith when she stood alone in ]9 Jfl. Although those awful years had passed, Britain was still severely rationed, and was strained financially, while Europe wn-s in dire distress. "Throughout the war, life in New Zealand had been sheltered without any real hardship." said Mr Martin, "and surely we have reached the stage when we can show in some tangible form our real appreciation and gratitude."

CAMPAIGN IN NORTHLAND SURPLUS PATRIOTIC GOODS (0.C.) WHANGAREI, Thursday A campaign for food for Britain is to be undertaken by the Northland Patriotic Council as n patriotic activity. Surplus food goods held by the various patriotic committees in the area are to be released for forwarding to Britain, provided satisfactory arrangements for shipping and distribution can be made with the National Patriotic Fund Board. This decision was made at a meeting of the council in Whaugarei today. PAY OR TIME OFF FOREMAN STEVEDORE APPEAL COURT DECISION (P-A.) " "WELLINGTON, Thursday The Court of Appeal gave a unanimous decision dismissing the appeal of a foreman stevedore, Leslie George Bond, of Wellington, against the decision of the Supreme Court, which t had dismissed his claim against the Waterfront Control Commission for £l4O, alleged to be due in respect of overtime worked by Bond between June. 1944, and March, 1945. The Wellington Waterside Employers' Industrial Union was named as a third party to the proceedings. The appeal was to obtain the Court's interpretation of Clause 3D of the Wellington foreman stevedores, timekeepers and permanent hands' award, which provides that all time worked outside prescribed hours shall be paid for at the rate of time and a-half for the first four hours and double time thereafter, with the proviso that, instead of paying overtime the employer may allow one and a-half hours off work for each hour of overtime, other than time worked on Sundays and holidays. The dispute was as to the meaning of the proviso giving tli ■ employer the right to extinguish his liability to pay overtime by allowing time off to the worker. DETENTION FOR FRAUD Charges of obtaining two cheques of a total value of I'-'.'i 9s by false pretences were admitted by Norman Campbell Pratt, a stablehand, aged 25. when be appeared before Mr L<\ H. Levien, 5.31., yesterday. He was sentenced to six months' reformative detention. A bushman, Alfred Aklred. aged 68, was charged with obtaining £lO by false pretences and with securing credit by fraud. He was sentenced to six months' reformative detention.