Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING GISBORNE, SATURDAY, DEC. 15, 1934. CONTROL OF AGRICULTURE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18581, 15 December 1934, Page 4

Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING GISBORNE, SATURDAY, DEC. 15, 1934. CONTROL OF AGRICULTURE

The statement by the Prime Minister in regard to the effects of the Agricultural Emergency Bill must, go a long way towards discounting the criticism of the measure, and although the case ho presents may not, be unanswerable it is itself an effective answer to most of the points that so far have been raised. It is common ground that some action by the Government is vital to the Dominion's primary industries, and it is agreed, also, that no steps could be effective unless they involved stringent control )f the industry, not merely one or two sections of it, but in all its branches. Judging by his comment, Mr. Forbes is no more enamoured of control than are his critics, but ho makes it clear that he is unable to discern any practical alternative. As he points out, New Zealand has had virtually nothing to do with the creation of the problems which it is sought to remedy, and whatever; action it is found necessary to take will have been forced upon it by the policies adopted in other countries. “The New Zealand exporter,” he says, ‘ ‘ has to deal with a world of nations operating in the straightjackets of tnriffsy quotas, currency manipulations, and a whole army of trade obstructions.” In other words, the world to-day says it will take only certain quantities of the Dominion’s produce. This is the genesis of the difficulty. Whether the country likes it or not, it has to reduce its exports. That position has to be accepted; it permits of no argument. The quesion then arises as to how exports are to be regulated without doing an injustice to individuals. It is obvious that at, this .stage control must be enforced. There is no longer such a thing as individuals in one country trading freely with those in another; modern business is virtually a case, of one State trading with another, and into this admittedly undesirable method of dealing the Dominion is

forced willy-nilly. The State, therefore,’ must either, trade itself or else delegato its powers to .some organisation that will truly represent the industry concerned, and as between the two alternatives there can be no argument as to which is preferable. In the words of Mr. Walter Elliot: “Let that organisation be by industry, by the chaps that know.’' The next question that arises is as to the best means of setting up the desired organisation. Hitherto primary industries have been under the control of various boards, which have undoubtedly been successful in many respects, but have failed, and could not do otherwise, to cope with the events of recent years. They have no status, for example, in dealing with other Governments, and all negotiations must, in consequence, be carried out through official channels. There is no co-ordination between, the various boards, and it is possible, and, indeed, probable, that one board, in an endeavor to further its own interests, might jeopardise those of another. From such a state of affairs it would be only a short, step to direct conflict between organisations which should be co-operating for the mutual welfare. The proposed Commission of Agriculture would provide a connecting link between the respective boards, or, as Mr. Forbes aptly put. it, become a coping-stone to complete the arch of the existing organisation. Phis commission, comprising the most capable men available to the Government and possessed of all the information it is possible to gather, would bo capable of formulating a long-range policy for primary industries as a whole, and would be vested with ample powers for dealing with the intricate problems that have already arisen. Its main task, of course, will be to handle the marketing situation, some indication of Ihc seriousness of which was contained in quotations made by the Prime Minister from British newspapers. It is quite definite that British imports of meat and dairy produce are to be subjected to quotas, and that will mean that the last open market will have disappeared. What is New Zealand to do then? Certainly the Government cannot leave matters to chance, for it is clear that the Dominion will have to fight, and fight hard, for every concession it obtains. Who is to do the fighting if there is no strong organisation, and how can there be organisation if there is no control, and stringent control at that? It is useless to shirk the problem by -talking generalities, or by indulging in political attacks upon the Government, and criticism up till now has followed one of these two lines. The immediate struggle is to obtain a fair and reasonable share of the British, markets, and in this respect New Zealand and the other Dominions ar-e handicapped by the agreements Britain has entered into with foreign countries. The outcome of the present negotiations is lifikult to foretell, but there is something to bo said for'the argument that the country with the best organisation will have the advantage over others. The same contention applies to negotiations with other countries. .A body which is empowered to speak authoritatively for the whole industry, and not only for one section of it, will carry far more weight than a board representing only one class of producer and probably antagonistic to others. Those who are opposed to the policy announced by the Government should be prepared to offer some practical alternative. To those who view the issues dispassionately it must appear that the Government has evolved the most practical means ol coping with a situation that has been forced upon it.