LARGE SUBSIDIES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 150, 3 September 1941, Page 7

LARGE SUBSIDIES

FARMING INDUSTRY MR HAMILTON'S CONCERN "SOMETHING WRONG"

Quoting the large subsidies required for the farming industry in New Zealand during a time cf good prices, the Hon. A. Hamilton during discussion of the Department of Agriculture Estimates in the House of Representatives, expressed some concern over the position. For carriage of lime for farmers, said Mr Hamilton, the vote included a £200,000 subsidy. There was another £175,000 to pay a portion of railway rates on fertilisers, and £750,000 was required as a subsidy on raw materials for fertilisers and a contribution towards freight on superphosphate transferred from the South to the North Island. Looking through other parts of the Estimates, he added one could find similar subsidies, such a's £239,000 to keep down the cost of sugar, and £288,000 to maintain the price of bread at a low level. Agriculture was the country's basis of economy,, and the farmer was getting fairly good prices—above the normal —for his products, yet it took all thoke subsidies to sustain the Industry. Another feature was that Hie agricultural industry, paid the lowest wages to its workers, and to Increase them would mean mora subsidy. The Minister of Agriculture, Mr Barclay, replied that the fertiliser subsidy, set doAvn at £750,000, looked like costing nearly a million this year. Three States in Australia paid [Ids per ton subsidy on fertilisers, though their farmers paid £15 Is per ton at the works, while New Zealand farmers were charged £3 16s at the works. The whole point lay in keeping down costs,, for if the Government allowed the price of fertiliser to go up by not subsidising the raw material, it would mean paying an increased proportion of profit to merchants on handling the higher value. The farmer had been paid higher prices on his wool, meat and butterfat, and possibly £1,250,000 in subsidies to meet Jncreased costs of production. That was being done all over the world.