MINISTERIAL ANSWERS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20024, 24 August 1939, Page 13

MINISTERIAL ANSWERS

QUERIES BY MEMBERS PETROL PRICE ISSUE ZONING OF NEWSPAPERS (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, this day. Most of the afternoon session of the House of Representatives yesterday was occupied l by consideration of written replies to questions. A question addressed to the Minister of Labour, the Hon. P. C. Webb, by Mr. F. V/. Doidge (Nat., Tauranga), who iasked whether the Minister had noted that the first result of the amendment to the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act had been that a union on strike in Auckland had made use of its provisions to obtain an increase in pay, so that the measure was likely to act not as a deterrent but as an incentive to strike, was replied to by the Minister as follows: “The amendment did not deprive a union of the right to negotiate with the employers regarding their conditions of employment. The agreement arrived at in the case referred to was purely voluntary, and the result disclosed that, instead of the measure being an incentive to strike, the opposite was achieved.”

Common Price For Petrol

In reply to a question by Mr. A. G. Hultquist (Lab., Bay of Plenty), who asked whether a committee would be set up to investigate the question of a universal freight-paid price fer petrol, the Minister of Industries and iCommerce, the Hon. D. G. Sullivan, said that to effect such a scheme would mean an increase in the price of petrol in the main centres of something in the vicinity of 2d a gallon. The Government had given careful consideration to the question, but did not intend to take action.

A proposal to zone the areas in which daily newspapers in New Zealand may circulate has not. been given consideration by the Government, but the question would be examined, sari the Minister of Industries and Commerce, Mr. Sullivan, in reply to r question by Mr. J. O’Brien (Lab., Westland), who referred to the unfair competition caused by large city newspapers invading the territory of provincial publications.

Dairy Industry Account In reply to a question addressed to »he acting-Minister of Marketing, the Hon. W. Lee Martin, by Mr. A. N Grigg (Nat., Mid-Canterbury), who asked whether any deficit in the dairy industry account was to be debited against the dairy industry or was to be met by the taxpayers generally, the Minister said +hat any consideration of a possible deficit in the dairy industry account must take account of the fact that the guaranted price scheme was a long-term plan. When all the 1938-39 season's produce had been shipped and sold overseas and the final results were known, the Government would give consideration to the treatment of the

deficit then standing to the debit of the dairy industry account. In answer to a question by Mr. D. C. Kidd (Nat., Waitaki) as to whether there was any provision in the trade agreement between New Zealand and Germany making it possible for the latter to resell New Zealand produce on the London markets in order lo receive foreign credits there, the Hon. P. Fraser said there was no specific provision rendering it impossible for Germany to do this. He added, however, that no instance of Germany selling on the London market any New Zealand produce imported into Germany under the agreement had come under the Government’s notice, and such sales were considered to be most unlikely.