MEAT AND WOOL BOARDS

Waikato Independent, Volume XLIV, Issue 6076, 14 July 1947, Page 2

MEAT AND WOOL BOARDS

COMMITTEES FOR CURRENT YEAR ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES CHANGED Throughout the countryside there must be much discussion and quite an amount of interviewing regarding

Meat and Wool Board representatives, for on Friday nominations close for producer representatives tc both boards, and a week later (up till noon on July 4th) for nominations for the electoral committee, says the farming editor of a Southern daily. A year ago many delegates to the meat committee were returned unopposed, covering all the North Island except the Auckland district and the South except for Otago and Southland. It- is hardly likely that there will again be so little opposition to those willing to serve. The election of committee delegates is by vote of any meat or wool producer, which means a farmer running as few as 100 sheep. Averaged over several years, less than 40 per cent, of those entitled to vote have done so. A considerable portion on the roll would, having but few sheep, be little interested in the operation of the Meat Board—those engaged in dairying or mixed farming who might run from 100 to 300 sheep only. Even so, I would like to see at least 60 per cent, poll, and, better still, one towards 75 per cent. After all, it is not only a privilege but also a duty' to exercise one's vote on a matter of: this kind." I It is pleasing to see that the elec-' toral boundaries for delegates to Meat and Wool Boards have been reconstituted this year, to provide for 21 districts. Apparently four -of these . will be two-man areas, as 25 dele- j gates are td be elected. The splittingup is a very considerable change from the past when there were but

12 districts, six in each island. The closer the community of interest, the keener people are to be concerned with the business in hand. Delegates to the electoral committee may be nominated up to noon on July 4th. These will assemble in Wellington ori August 26th, and from then till August 29th (inclusive), will consider the respective annual reports and balance sheets and elect representatives to the boards, whose

appointments are for two years. Consideration of the above matters serves as a reminder that the personnel of the Royal Commission on Sheep-Farming, which was expected to have been announced, early in May (and on the best of authority was this so), remains still undetermined. Possibly the lack of an available judge of Supreme Court standing has caused the hold-up. The task to be undertaken is a very big one; it is understood that six months' full-time devotion is likely to be required of those undertaking this service. It is wise to so estimate, as the industry is a very big and important one with many complexities and a very serious problem as regards the back country, which is interwoven with all sections of the industry. Although the need for investigation might not be momentarily urgent, it is nonetheless deserving of classification as an urgent job to be begun.