SHIPPING MERGER.

Timaru Herald, Volume CVI, Issue 16284, 11 July 1917, Page 2

SHIPPING MERGER.

DISCUSSED WITH MINISTERS. INTERESTING INFORMATION ' i ELICITED. (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, July 10. The slipping merger has been discussed by the Members of Parliament since the House assembled. To-day a meeting of members was held to consjder the matter t and,as the outcome of that meeting about forty members inetrviewod Mr Massey, Sir Joseph Ward and Mr'G. W. Russoll on the subject.

The, spea.kers on i behalf, of the deputation, Messrs Guthrie,'Forbes, Sidey and Isitt, .said they Tiad' come to ask the Government to take such, steps as might be possible to prevent tlio merger taking place, if this could in any way be done; but Mr Massey told them at the outset that lie had just received -a. telegram to say that tho British Treasury approved of tho proposals of the Union Company with regard to tho mergeri with the P. and 0. panyi.iis aniiouneeine,nt caused some dismay, and all the speakers. . expressed i-\-tieme alarm as to the possibility of' this country .suffering-severely by coming into the clutches ol" the big <=bipping trust. The deputation suggested that State competition might be necessary to keep down fares and freights. Mr Massey -said that ' under the charters by which tho Government had taken over-some of the Union Company's ships for transport purposes the Government had the right to purchase these ships. There wero ton ships so chartered by the Government from the Company. There was a dispute between the Government and the Uniois Company as to whether the rates paid l under the charters were what are known as Blue Book rates —rates fixed on the scale recommended by the Imperial Government at the outbreak of .war. This, gave the Government a certain amount of control over these ships. He could assure the deputation that the Government'"? first "desire'was to - safeguard tho interests of the people of New Zealand, ,if it were possible to do so. In his opinion, however, these ships, under charter to the Government, wero not the class of shins / New Zealand should- purchase. Some of them were purely passenger ships and some were small. Sir Joseph. Ward: Andvverty t old. Mr Massey said if the Government was to purchase ships it should buy largo insulated ships. Personally he regretted, for «sitimental reasons/ that rhe_ transfer had taken place. The Union Company had always.' been regarded as a New Zealand . Company. The correspondence bo had Tc-ad did not end the matter. It was. the intention of the ' Government to communicate again with the Secretary of State for the polonies. Tho Government ; had already ,'askedthe Imperial Government not to permit the transfer of snares, but' apparently the opposition had been withdrawn.

Mr Isitt: Is it hopelessly too late now? \ , _ Mr Massey: I don't know."' I don't know whether, anything more can be done-or not/- We shall not know until we get a reply to' a cablegram we propose; to send' to the SecroliarySfoi- th Q Colonies. • Mr ,Maissey added''that he never.heard of; proposed -merger whilst •at Home. '.. •<> -- ■ ■ ', Sir Joseph Ward said 'heV thought J arhament was entitled to "tho fullest information on, anything connected with the matter. Until they reached ©acn- ■ ada on their return to New Zealand I they had never heard a .word of any ' kind about tho proposed merger. In Ea&land he saw Sir' James' Mills once and Mr Holdsworth several times but neither of them mentioned to him'that any merger was under consideration, i'or ins part he would oppose the purchase of the Union Company for three millions- It was not worth that amount to this country. What reason had we to be airraid of tho P. amid O or any other Company? He never had a share Union Company or any other shipping company, but he admitted that it was and had been a ver y fine company for New Zealand IF «o wished to tackle this question a transportation it would he possible to prov.de all the steamers required fo~ Slf ? aS •?;• trade , in this ~™tr? to, half a million, and if we wished to spend a million we could get in add£ tion better ships for the * Australian New Zealand trade than the Union Company now had'; but it would be folly to attempt to purchase sh p S in t:ie. time. He did not fear the enn sequences 0 f anything that had Cn done because the strength of the x.Miiei see ti3e Government luiv n lino Iquiremenir bl T^^ SUit iiunements. If afterwards anv shin ! tned to-extort: exorbitant freights from the producers of this country the State would have to-interest iteelf in the matter. Without trving to drL out , one ; eonipany it might be noss bfo bv rrtugnts. He would have infinitelv preferred to see the Union Commnv maantam its independence, but hFdS nct_think th ls country nee d be dotn in the mouth because the Union Company had combined with the P and O Company., He did not think it would be possible for the Union Company to carry on the inter-colonial trade bv black labour.

Ml " Russell said our experience, with the P. and 0. Company to date had not been such as to justify confidence in it- Before the war freight on wool was 3d-per ■ lb, ■ being ■ id more than was- paid from Australia. Early in the war the freight was raised bv a'd lb. Last year the P. and O. Company merged with the New Zealand Shipping Company, ■ and the wool freight was raised by Id per lb, representing £862,000 on the wool from New Zealand, and being an advance of 280 per T? nt ' fV I*™ 1 *™ rates - How far the 1 . and O. Company was responsible for this he coidd not say, but there were the facta. The Cabinet considered the proposed merger before the return of Mr Massey and Sir Joseph Ward and cabled to the British Government asking that the British Treasury should withhold consent to the transfer of TTnion Company's shares. The reply of the Imperial Government to this request was that there seemed to be no real reason for the Imperial Government to interfere in the matter. He had no doubt that on account of pressure from the P. and O. Company, the Imperial Government had allowed the deal to he pushed through. He mentioned one or two facts regarding the relarioons of the Union Company with the people of New Zealand. From the time of t'he imposition of the property tax in 1879 until its repeal in 1891 the Bhips of tho "Union Company were exempt from taxation, while everyone else paid on the whole of their property, and during the five years ending March 31,- 1917, the Government paid £3,493,000 to tho Union Company for services rendered. Of this 6iim £2,393,000 was for war services. Afore than the valiii> of some of the ships chartered had been paid by the Government for tlie hire of them, For one ship, valued nt. £60,000, the sum o£ £131,000 had been paid iu

hire. He calculated that tho price paid "for "the Company's assets, was i . a"oout £lO 16s Sd per ton, on the tonnage of the whole fleet, Aad thus was a very low price at buy ships now. His own lie might -venture to make one ■Hie Government, was that the miSrer should be f held over or a "Royal Commission or 'Committee, of the House be set up to | inquire into it. I Sir Joseph Ward said he wished to refer' to one or two | Mr Russell, which might It. was true that big paiad for the hire of it. should be understood this payment of the crews, cost ol coal, and all depreciation charges, for all these were paid by the Company. It must nob ho supposed that' the Government was making huge concessions to the Union Company. He did not think tho Government could have got ships elsewhere. In any case the original charters of the -transports were made before, lie ioined the National Government, but the charters had come up for renewal after lie joined the. Government, and with the knowledge of Mr Russell and himself. Mr Russell said nothing he had said was intended as a criticism, but'as a plain statements of facts. He certainly had not wished to criticise anything done by his colleagues. Mr Massey, in conclusion, gave the members assembled his assurance that nS& S + i G °TO-nmont could do to protect the people of New Zealand S n d s Ve e S! s for exorbitant *■***,