FARMING AFFAIRS

Chronicle (Levin), 19 February 1948, Page 6

FARMING AFFAIRS

(This column -is supplied weekly- by Federated Farmers of New Zealand, and the information /?iven is offtcial, but any views expressed are those of the ^Federation, and are not ' necessarily. those of this newspaper.)" * , As a result of a decision made by the Dominion council at its meeting last week the Dominion president will wait ou the statutory. boards with a yiew to bringing about closer collaboration betwen theni and Federated Farmers. The resolutiou was nioved by Mr. R. G. Buckleton who said that' the -Federation should take the initative in securing closer liaisiou with the boards-; a view supported by the' secouder Mr. IJ. P. L. Dillon, who said that t'oo bftenthere was antagonism shown between the boards. and the Federation. ■ For years he had been working to seciire closer relationship between the boards and the national farmers organisations, said Mr. W-. W. Mullholland. It had taken p long time for concrete developements to oocur but as. a result o-f the action of the f>resent ehairman of the dairy board (Mr, W. E. Hale) the Dairy Industry Council was set up. and on that the Federation was represented There was fprther room for improvement, however, and he believed that regular and routine meetings should be held between representatives of the boards and of the Federation. In the opinion ot° Mr. Gr. A. Walsh "the'Meat Board had the closest contaet with the meat and wrool section. JSTothing the council could do, could make that any closer. In some comments on the matters set out in the agenda, the Dominion president (Mr. W. N.'Perry) raised the point that there was an important prin ciple involved in various actions of the boards making decisions on- matters sueli as the withdrawal of fertiliser sulisidies. The boards were elected in the first place to de'al with eommodities and not to represent the farnier in dealings with the Govermnent on matters other than those coi^nected' with their own eommodities. That was obeious, said Mr. Perrv, by the tact that the Govemment had representatives 011 the three boards and ir should- not', therefore, negotiate .with itself. That was the crux of the matter and Mr. Perry considered that it shouid be raised with the boards. The Federation should insist that the boards performed their functions in accordance with the terms of their acts. The boards sliould leave the job of representing the. farmer to the Federation. The facr that the lioards were tlie custodians of of the stabilisation accouuts tended (o cloud the issue but the Federation had to concern itself with the prineiple. The statutory boards should not deal with matters of general econoinic iioliey affpftino* •fn.rnifirs.