WELLINGTON TOPICS

Hokitika Guardian, 30 January 1929, Page 2

WELLINGTON TOPICS

FRUIT CONTROL BOARD.

AUTHORITY CHALLENGED

(Special Correspondent.)

WELLINGTON, January 28

The enterprising apple growers and exporters who were refused permission by the Fruit Control Board a little while ago to ship a large consignment ol' apples to a German port are not accepting their rebuff submissively. Their appeal to the Minister of Agriculture in the matter was sympathetically received; but Mr Forbes had to explain to them that Parliament had placed very large powers in the hands of the Board and that the Government could not abrogate these powers without tho authority of Parliament. He did not approve of the restrictions that had been placed upon growers in this respect, and he was satisfied they were retarding the progress of an industry, capable of very wide expansion; but he could not override tlie law as it stood on the Statute )3ook. On broad lines he disapproved of Government interference with private, enterprise, except in cases of the utmost urgency, and he could not think of any reason why the 'fruit growers should not enjoy the same freedom 1 a S’did other primary producers. THE BOARD’S ATTITUDE. It is understood that the Minister made such representations as he properly could to the Fruit Board on the subject and that for his pains he was told in so many words to mind his own business. The Board’s official justification for its refusal to allow some thirty or forty thousand cases t of apples to be sent to Hamburg by.private enterprise was that it had arranged to send an experimental shipment to that port itself, and that it 'feared the dispatch of such a large shipment as the one proposed would not only prejudice its own venture, but would also weaken the London market. The latest development in the matter is a rumour to the effect that 1 the Fruit Board has omitted to take the. necessary formal steps to establish its power of control. 'The story seemfe almost , incredible in view of the fact that the Board has been exercising "its assumed authority for three seasons, but ft is given impressive colour by the, fact that sevei al independent sales Tor European ports were made on Saturday. THE HOME COUNTRY’S LEAD. The cabled summary of the British Prime Minister’s election speech at Newcastle-on-Tyne, published in the local newspapers on Saturday, is as meat and drink to many an inspiring young politician in the community. Mr Baldwin undertook that the Government would continue to help industry in three ways, by Imperial preference, safeguarding, and by a reduction of the burden on industry. He repeated his pledge not to impose taxes on (foodstuffs and fie condemned nationalisation, whiefi, he declared, made for nothing hut failure and loss everywhere. As examples he quoted the loss of fourteen millions sterling in Australia on an attempt to establish State shipping, a loss of ten millions on a similar adventure in Canada and a loss of a hundred millions in the United States. Whether this declaration of faith is going to save the Conservative Party at Home from such a debacle as overtook the Reform Party here remains to he seen; but it certainly has tickled the ears of many people in political circles. LESSONS FOR THE FUTURE. An unsuccessful candidate in the Reform interest at the last general election, for instance, while holding fast to his faith in Mr Coates as leader of the party, attributes the surprise of November last to the Government s failure to apprehend the trend of public opinion throughout the Dominion. Ministers faced none of the problems Mr Baldwin handled so adroitly .They seemed, he continued with emphasis, to take it for granted that by no possible happening could a majority of thirty-two or thirty-three he converted into a minority of twenty odd. They assumed that the same old platform would serve the same old purpose. They allowed Sir Joseph Ward to catch them napping with a policy of a similar type to the one propounded by Mr Baldwin, and before they knew what was the matter with them they were beaten. The electors wanted abolition of food duties, relidf to industry, an end to nationalisation and a cheery outlook, and they took the road that seemed to lead towards these ends.