FARMERS’ TERMS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20108, 30 November 1939, Page 7

FARMERS’ TERMS

CO-OPERATION IN WAR BAN ON SOCIALISATION MR. MULHOLLAND’S VIEW DAIRY CONFERENCE (For Press Association.) WELLINGTON, this day. A special Dominion conference of ward delegates of the New Zealand Dairy Board opened this morning. Also present were members of the Dairy Industry Council, representing tlie National. Dairy Federation, South Island Dairy Association, New Zealand Farmers’ Union and the Dairy Board. 'l’he proceedings are expected to last two days. Mr. W. E. Hale, chairman of the board, is presiding. In an address Mr. W. W. Mulholland, president of the Farmers’ Union and a member of the Dairy Industry Council, said they were prepared to co-operate with the Government Lb the fullest degree in order that the war might be efficiently conducted, but they must make it quite plain to the Government and everyone else in the community that they were not prepared to co-operate with anyone to change the economic system to one that meant simply slavery and domination and where freedom was lost entirely. Country Not Consulted lie charged the Government with already having taken actions that could not be justified by the war situation, and with having failed to take the country into its confidence regarding its intentions. The fact that the Government had to take wide powers did mean that it should take tlie country into its confidence in regard to its intentions.

In any state of emergency it was essential that there should be the best possible relations between the Government and the rest of the community. The Government's failure to give a straight-out assurance that it wbuld not make use of the war situation to introduce a permanent scheme of socialisation was one of tlie largest factors militating against this cooperation and understanding, particularly as far as the farming community was concerned.

In regard to exchange control, Mr. Mulhblland said there was only one way in which the exchange position could be corrected, and that was by bringing the internal value of tlie pound into line with its external value, either by increasing its internal purchasing power or by increasing the number-of New Zealand pounds purchased by £IOO sterling, thus raising the New Zealand value of goods sold overseas In any case, the activities of the printing press must be reduces and that meant the Government must practice economy.

Increasing Currency

If the position were examined, it would be seen that the amount of notes in circulation was still increasing. New Zealand had to realise that no monetary manipulation could produce somethingg out of nothing. The first, essential in New Zealand to-day was a change in the inflationary policy, and this was a fundamental thing to the farmers. The farmer was going to be swamped by mounting costs which must rise very considerably in the near future unless some reasonable method was found of dealing with the situation. lie would say that the Government’s worst failure in -the economic field had been the handling of the exchange position and the factors connected with it. That failure might be disastrous to the whole community.

Referring to enlistments from the farming industry, he expressed the view that farmers did not want any special treatment, but it was reasonable to ask for time to enable the farmers to readjust the working of them- places to make provision for labour where employees desired to enlist. “I believe we should state emphatically that we are prepared to submit to whatever regulations- and conditions are necessary for the efficient conduct of the war, but that we should add this proviso that those regulations should be so administered that a normal position can be returned to after the war,” said Mr. Mulholland. “We should insist that the war is not used as an excuse for permanent Government control of industry in New Zealand. That is fundamental. We should insist that commercial institutions, whicii have served this country well from the inception and have grown up with the needs, must be preserved.”