POSITION PREDICTED

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26214, 26 July 1946, Page 6

POSITION PREDICTED

COMMENT OF FARMERS’ UNION (P.A.) WELLINGTON, July 25. “ The position which had arisen with the Hamilton Land Sales Committee had been predicted by the Farmers’ Union in 1943 when the Servicemen's Settlement and Land Sales Bill was brought down,” said an official statement issued by the union to-night. t “At that time,” the statement says, “ the union urged that the appointment of members of committees should be for a definite term. The fact that members of committees were to hold office ' during the pleasure of the Go-vernor-General’.and would therefore be subject to ministerial influence, was one of the reasons why the union urged its members not to accept appointment to committees. . “ Recent happenings in regard to the Hamilton committee have proved that the apprehensions of the Farthers’ Union have been abundantly justified, the statement adds, “ they have also proved that the alternative proposals made by the union at that time would have provided a scheme of control of land prices much less subject to abuse than the existing one. It is a pity that those proposals were not adopted by the Government. Had they been accepted, the present unfortunate position would never have arisen.”