COMMERCIAL TRUSTS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22712, 26 October 1935, Page 24

COMMERCIAL TRUSTS

VOLUMINOUS EVIDENCE AMENDING BILL DROPPED (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, October 25. Owing to the limited time at its disposal for the consideration of the evidence placed before it on the Commercial Trusts Amendment Bill the Industries and Commerce Committee of the House of Representatives was unable to submit any conclusions when it reported the Bill back !o the House to-day. The chairman of the Mr A. D. M'Leod, said that in these circumstances the committee recommended that the Bill be not allowed to proceed. The report was adopted. A motion moved by Mr M‘Leod that the minutes of the evidence be printed was agreed to. The report of the committee stated that owing to the large volume of evidence which was tendered to the committee and the limited time available for consideration of such evidence, the committee could not without further investigation and inquiry come to any, definite conclusion. As the subject matter of the Bill was of such importance to the public the committee considered it should be subjected to further inquiry during the next session of Parliament. Amplifying the report of the committee, Mr M’Leod said that very voluminous and important evidence had been taken. It was of such a nature that it would be extremely valuable to whatever Government might be in office in next Parliament. The evidence showed that there was a demand for the fixation of minimum prices for many articles. Parliament had to decide whether there were to be minimum prices fixed or whether industries were to be allowed the latitude in fixing the prices themselves. A large number of traders who had given yeoman service to this country during the past three or four years, particularly in the country districts, had been forced into a state of virtual bankruptcy by reason of the amount of credit they had been forced to give, and by the chain stores which carried none of that load. The small trader had been knocked to pieces. In the final report of the Industries Commerce Committee it was stated (flat 64 petitions had been presented asking that the Commercial Trusts Amendment Bill be not proceeded with.