NEWS IN BRIEF

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 11, Issue 3, 10 March 1947, Page 6

NEWS IN BRIEF

“Name Rather Than Reality” “Stabilisation continues to be a name rather than a reality,” states the New Zealand Master Grocers’ Federation in its annual report. “On the one hand, retailers’ prices are rigidly controlled and on the other hand, wage costs soar at the pleasure of the Arbitration Court. The trade does not object to the best possible wages for assistants but it does maintain that not only is the employer entitled to recover the amount of his increased wage bill, but also to secure a corresponding increase for himself. As we understand it, stabilisation was intended to preserve a proper balance between incomes and costs, but just as long as the Price Tribunal, the Arbitration Court and the Land and Income Tax Department operate as watertight compartments, it is obvious that stabilisation will continue to be a meaningless name.” Parasite Released A new enemy of the white butterfly, a small fly of the wasp family, has been released in Gisborne. It is the first time this parasite has been freed in the North Island. The release was made by the orchard instructor to the Department of Agriculture, Mr J. D. Kennedy, in a paddock of rape and thousand-headed kale at Manutuke, both of these crops being badly infested with the butterfly pest. The parasites, which were sent to Gisborne by Dr. D. Miller, superintendent of the Cawthron Institute, Nelson, arrived in good condition and took the wing readily. The fly is very active and feeds on the larvae of the white butterfly. It is expected that it will be more eeffctive than previous parasites that have been tided. v