“A VERY LIVE ISSUE”

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 77, Issue 6543, 23 July 1948, Page 5

“A VERY LIVE ISSUE”

BOBBY CALF INDUSTRY COMMENTS BY MR G. F. SIM IN HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES During the course of his speech on the Address-in-Reply, Mr G. F. Sim, M.P. for Waikato, dealt with the bobby calf industry as follows: Then there is the question of the bobby calf industry. That is a very live issue, because it affects many industries. It is not only a local matter but a national matter. We find that the Government wants to interfere mtfre and more with this business, and the farmers just do not know where they stand. It will be remembered that at one time the bobby calf business was worth absolutely nothing, but some farmers with initiative and foresight took it up, explored overseas requirements, and established good markets, with the result that to-day they are selling in thirteen different countries. The farmers have been responsible for pioneering this industry, and tjiey put it on a very sound footing. In 1942, when stabilisation came in, they agreed to let the tanning industry have 50,000 skins at agreed prices, for military purposes. The demands have increased since 1942. Last season the tanning industry required 273,000 skins, and these were selected skins. This year it is estimated that the requirements will be about 326,000. They want to know where these demands are going to end. Last year on the open market the average price for these skins was 78d a lb. On the local market, however, the 273,000 skins used by the tanning industry realised 24.5 d per pound, made up of 16.18 d paid by the tanner and 8.32 d found by the Government. There was a levy of 6s imposed by the Government on skins sold overseas and paid into a pool account, and the difference between the local price of 24.5 d and the price received overseas has been met by the producers out of this fund accruing from the levy. Dairy farmers to-day are subsidising the economy of New Zealand, in respect of these bobby calf skins, to the extent of about £318,000. Not only is the Government extracting that subsidy, but it is also ruining the producers’ bobby calf market overseas. I want to remind members of the Government, who are always wanting to make inroads into primary producers’ sources of revenue, that they are in effect taking what might be termed the pin-money of the farmers’ wives, because the womenfolk on the farms play a most important part in the work of the farms> and they feel they have a rightful claim to, or at any rate their husbands give them, the money realised from the sale of bobby calf skins. They are certainly entitled to that money because I know of no other workers’ wives who carry out such work as is done by farmers’ wives. We must remember also that the Government has settled some returned servicemen on farms, and this money it is taking from them means a lot to them. Every penny counts at this stage. Then there are the sharemilkers to be taken into consideration. The Government is taking something away from them too. The Government has repeatedly appealed for greater production. The Maoris have been asked to respond, and they are responding; but a lot of them are going to say, “Py Corry, they take a lot of my bobby calf money. Not good enough.” And it is not good enough; they should be entitled to their full reward. I believe the Government should play the game and throw overboard a lot of these provoking controls which are robbing the producers, and I hope that, when the Government meets the industry again on the 27th of this month, it will show a little’more consideration and co-operation. We know that the Government has always opposed the farmer, firstly, I think, because his occupation makes him a very independent sort of person. He has to face droughts and floods and loss of stock by disease, and so on. He faces up to all those difficulties without going to any one for assistance. Secondly, members of the Government know that there are not many farmers who vote for them, and so they do not show them much consideration. Through the medium of the licensing system membefs of the Government already hold the fate of importers and many businesses in the palm of their hand, but *Jiey cannot get the farmer. He has too independent a nature. It is fortunate for him that they cannot get him, because otherwise he would have a short-lived life, despite what the member for Waimarino might try to say. To make my point that the Government is going towards a controlled economy I would like to place some facts before the House—without covering ground that has already been traversed —so that members can judge for themselves. The Minister of Finance to-day has control of our exports, and to a large extent the sale of our produce. He has complete control of the goods that come into the country and are purchased with our overseas funds. He controls air and rail transport and threatens to take over sea and road transport. We have controls over prices, and buildings, and there is licensing, and last but not least he has control of finance and of the trading banks through the Reserve Bank, so we can see how far we have gone towards a totalitarian state. It is all vested in the hands of one man, and it is no wonder that the people are becoming restive. Under this set-up, we are getting less of everything except taxation and control. The people do not necessarily want to take my word for this. They should analyse the position for themselves, and then they,will find it is far worse than I can possibly describe in the time allowed me in this Debate.