PRICE GUARANTEE

Waikato Times, Volume 124, Issue 20784, 20 April 1939, Page 10

PRICE GUARANTEE

DAIRYMEN’S REPORT SUGGESTED COMPROMISE LAST YEAR’S FIGURES (By Telegraph.—Press Association) WELLINGTON, Thursday The special committee set up by the Dairy Conference yesterday to bring down one compre-. hensive report dealing with the guaranteed prico presented It today. The point was made by Mr Marshall in so doing, that the report gave expression to the dairymen’s willingness to reciprocate In the Minister of Finance’s aim to reduce costs in New Zealand, and consequently set out that as a practicable measure of co-opera-tion with the Minister offer to forego ascertainable increases In costs and to accept for the 193940 season the standards and prices recommended by the 1938 advisory committee for the 193940 season.

Mr 'Marshall pointed out that the conference tould not turn a deaf ear to Mr Nash’s plea to bring about some stability, and j| was recognised that in the end all costs would ultimately come back on to the farmer. Although the committee recommended the 1939-40 price as above, the report nevertheless endorsed as correct the standards and conclusions as recorded by the 1938 guaranteed price investigation committee, and protested against the alteration of such standards and prices by the Minister of Marketing.

It also set out that it was unable to agree to the Minister’s suggestion that the prices fixed by the Government for the current season should bp continued for the 1939-40 season; that a price to do justice to the producer and to give effect to the provisions of the Primary Products Marketing Act should be the price recommended by the 1938 advisory committee, plus ascertainable increases in costs.

Mr Marshall stated that if the Government agreed to pay the price for next season as recommended, it should be an Increase of .71 d on the current season’s price.

The report also requested the board, in collaboration with a representative committee, to continue negotiations with the Minister.

The report was adopted unanimously and enthusiastically, there being very little discussion.

The point was made that the dairy industry alone should not make a sacrifice to reduce costs, but would make the sacrifice if other sections of the community walked with it step by step. The suggestion was made that if the Government did not agree to the committee's recommendation the conference should re-assemble, but this was regarded as a threat to the Government by some of the delegates, and the matter was left in the hands of the Dairy Board.