GUARANTEED PRICE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23590, 29 August 1938, Page 10

GUARANTEED PRICE

CURRENT SEASON’S PAYMENTS EARLY STATEMENT EXPECTED . REPORT BEFORE CABINET (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, Aug. 28. The guaranteed prices for the current season’s dairy exports will probably be made known within the next few days. The advisory committee representing the Government and the dairy industry submitted its report over a week ago to the Minister of Marketing, Mr W. Nash, but in the meantime no meeting of Cabinet has been held and in consequence there has been no opportunity for a final decision to be reached. It is believed that the report of the advisory committee embodies a most comprehensive survey of the existing conditions in the dairy industry and that a full copy of the evidence heard by the committee has been made available to the Government. It is on this evidence that the committee has based its recommendations for the new season’s prices, but the figure decided upon by the committee will not necessarily be the rate for the current export year. The final responsibility in fixing the price remains with the Government.

During the past few days, Mr Nash made a detailed study of the committee’s report and of the evidence, and he will be in a position to make his own recommendations to Cabinet early this week. The general impression is that nothing will be finalised before the return of the Prime Minister, Mr M. J. Savage, from Auckland on Tuesday, Although Mr Nash has made no decision in the matter, it would appear that his announcement of the price is likely to take the form of a Ministerial statement in the House of Representatives within the next few days. The butter and cheese which has been exported since August 1 has been paid for at last season’s prices with the increase which was announced by the Minister in June. It is expected that the new price will carry a further increase, and in that case an adjustment will have to be made in the payments for exports during the first month of the season, INCREASED PRICE EXPECTED COMMITTEE’S RECOMMENDATIONS BELIEVED TO BE UNANIMOUS (Special to Daily limksi AUCKLAND. Aug. 28. It is understood on reliable authority that the recommendation made to the Government by the Guaranteed Dairy Price Committee was a unanimous one and that it suggested a considerable increase in the payment for the current season. The exact amount of the increase is not known, but it is believed to be in the vicinity of 2d a lb. It is said that this is the first occasion in which the industry itself has compiled accurate costs and thus presented its case in a form which had to impress an impartial committee. For some months prior to the actual sittings, the industry had retained the services of Professor Tocher, professor of economics at Canterbury College, for the purpose of preparing the ease for the farmer from statistics of farm and factory costs gathered throughout the Dominion. It is believed that the case when finally prepared proved that to comply With the terms of the Primary Products Marketing Act, a considerable increase in the guaranteed price was necessary. It was stated at the annual meeting of the New Zealand Co-oper-tive Dairy Companies last week by Mr J. H. Furniss that their actingchairman of directors, Mr W. H. Marshall, had refused to sit on the Guaranteed Price Committee until it was agreed that the “ four points ” of the compensated price plan were included in the order of reference, and it'is probable that a good deal of the suggested increase is due to one of these points—the need for farmers to “ pay competitive rates of wages.” Many in the industry complained bitterly last year that the standards set by the Government for production per man and production per cow were 190 high, and it is thought that reconsideration of these factors is responsible for part at least of the suggested increase. Those in touch with the position consider that the increase suggested will certainly have to be granted by the Government, particularly as the committee apparently reached unanimity on the figure necessary to place the farmer in the position intended by the Act.