Farming Column

Hokitika Guardian, 8 October 1932, Page 8

Farming Column

FARMERS’ UNION

NEwk AND NOTES.

At last conference a resolution was passed asking that the Advances to Settlers, Rural Credits, and Rural Intermediate Credits branches be amalgamated under the control of a Board to restrict loans to rural securities only, ind to lend to farmers at a rate which would be sufficient to cover actual costs.

The. Prime Minister has replied thus —“lt wOuid be necessary, if the proposal were carried out, for the Board; j wnicli it is suggested should be set up, I to establish an extensive organisation throughout the Dominion at considerable expense, and this would not appear to be justified at the present time. The Rural Intermediate Credit Board has arranged to utilise the services of the Public Trust Office through out the Dominion and this has proved both economical and satisfactory. It is essential in conducting the class of business transacted by the Rural Intermediate Credit Board that there should be representatives in the districts in wl ch the loans are granted, and as the Public Trust Office lias offices >in the districts referred to the Board was able to commence business without the expense of setting up offices of its own with consequent loss of time and expense. The charge made by the Public. Trustee is based upon the business transacted in each district and the amount charged varies with the volume of work pei'iormed. If the Rural Interr mediate Credit Board had opened offices in the principal districts of the Dominion,. the cost of administering the system would have been prohibitive. The Government and Parliament before the Rural Intermediate Credit Act was passed fully considered the admintration of the Rural Advances and Rural Intermediate Credit branches, and it was decided to entrust the administration of the Rural Advances branch to the State Advances office and to set up a special board to deal with intermediate credit, and it was agreed,,that the Public Trust. Office. The arrangement entered into has proved entirely satisfactory, and it is not considered that amalgamation such as is suggested is necessary or desirable. There is only a small margin of interest allowed between the rate which the Rural Intermediate Credit Board borrows money and the rate at which it lends the money to the farmers, and it is therefore essential that the administration of the rural intermediate credit system should be as economical as passible.

•As I believe that-the administration of the Rural Intermediate Credit Board has been .most helpful and sympathetic to farmer borrowers, and this i s only what- one would anticipate, in view of the constitution of the Rural Intermediate Credit Board and its districts boards on which the farming industry is so largely represented; .

do not consider that the alterations suggested by you would be 4 of ny benefit so far as the rural intermediate credit system is concerned.

.Durng the winter all members of Parliament were circularised to ascertain their vk ,vs regarding the earmarking of some of the motor taxation for general purposes. Only 30 members out of about 80 replied, and the consensus of opinion was that owing to the exceptional position the country was in regarding finance, he transference of £500,000 was justified.

The Prime Minister replied thus:— “A s a. general principle the Government does not favour the earmarking of taxation for special purposes, a s such a practice, apart from other consideratios. is contrary to the principles of sound public finance, in that expenditure on particular activities should be decided in relation to the general budgetary require jients at the time. I am, of course, aware of the circumstances which Ted to the earmarking of petrol taxation for roading purposes, but in view of-the difficult economic conditions at present prevailing there has been no alternative 'rut to restrict expendituer on roads equal with expenditure in other directions.”

The Leader of the Opposition, H. E. Holland Esq., M.P., expressed his opinion in the following tonis: —“I am strongly of the opinion that the funds derived horn the petrol t r, x shoil’d be used, for reading purposes as provided by the law, more especially sinre the raid on moneys which properly belonged to the Maix Highways Fund was for the purpose of saving persons with large incomes from additional taxation.

The world s sheep population is estimated at nearly 800 million head, of which about one-third are in the Empi~e They produce between 3,500 and 4.000 million lbs of wool per annum and of this amount about 1,500 million lbs., including much of the best wool in the world, comes from the British Dominions of Australia, the Union of South Africa and New Zealand.

The sheep population of New Zealand is estimated at around 30 million. This total is double the total forty years ago, and is equal to the sheep population of the United Kingdom, whilst the wool c)ip is now over 200 million lbs.

I The great bulk is exported and most i 0 f it goes to the United Kingdom. A I much higher proportion of the total j export goes from New Zealand to the I United Kingdom than goes to Great [ Britain from Australia, or South Africa. (but the. proportion taken by the Un|jted Kingdom is not so high rs ; + and the quantity re-exported has risen, j France has now replaced Germany as

the larges continental importer of wool from New Zealand. The wool industry of New Zealand recently got £I,OOO from one or the latest Art Unions-, and a. committee with L. R. C. Macfailane of Culverdeii as chairman, has been appointed to use this money in propaganda for New Zealand wool.

At the Conference in July-the following resolution was carried:— “That the Government be asked to

adopt a system of land valuing which estimates values on an earning and producing capacity basis, and not on a selling value basis; that a local advisory valuer be appointed to work in conjunction with the Government valuer in respect to all valuations made in any respective district; that a protest be made re high fee charges for a revaluation.”

The Minister-in-Charge, Valuation Department, replied thus:—“A basis of valuation must be definite. Earning capacity and producing capacity cannot be made the basis of land valuation unless a formula, is provided for converting them into % capital values. It is not possible to find a formula which could be applied satisfactorily in the widely varying conditions met, with throughout the Dominion. This is not to say that earning capacity and producing capacity are not factors in determining land values.; ijhey are in fact the principal factors and there is nothing in the present law to prevent them receiving the full measure of consideration., Any person who has attended an Assessment Court Vnust have observed that when farm lands are under consideration the arguments centre on carrying capacity and producti n. The Department’s valuations are used not only within counties and boroughs but also over the wider areas of hospitals districts, drainage districts etc., and I have been tirged to have the valuations over these wider are?r made by one man if possible so r.s to secure the greatest measure of uniformity. The suggestion that a local man be associated with the Government Valuer is a step in the other direction, and its adoption might create a suspicion that the local man’s influence is not altogether disinterested. If he acted in an advisory capacity only it does not appear that much would be gained as the District. Valuer is free to seek advice from any person whom he considers ' able to give useful information. The fees for valuations under Section 50 of the Valuation of Land Act are based pn the estimated cdst of the work involved. It is not reasonable that they should be fixed lower than this, thereby creating a charge to be met by the general taxpayer.” ~ •- -•••- •• •

The principal cause of the hardship existing amongst the farming community is the phenomenal under-consump-tion of our primary produce abroad—and even locally. The reason no doubt is the diminution or absence of purchasing power by* the general public: it is hoped that Parliament will make searching enquiries into the various causes creating this shortage of purchasing power artd' will frame remedies for its rectification. In other words our monetary system needs a thorough overhaul, in order to keep it in step with our progressive production. With the index of export Values' about 800, and the index of farm expenditure about 1490, how much longer can the farming industry exist?

■ A few years ago steps were taken in Taranaki to carry out a scheme for the exchange of bulls between 'dairy fqirme/rs, so as to save gbod bulls from being sent to the freezing works when their owners required a change of blood. The scheme has not been heard of for some time, but the idea has not been altogether lost sight.of, as the .Rongotea branch of the Dairy Farmers’ Union brought a similar proposal before the executive of the union at a recent meeting at Palmerston Jt was decided to suggest to the Herd Testing Federation that it form a bnS - exchange in conjunction with the Daily Farmers’ Association. A case was mentioned of a farmer selling a magnificent bull for £5. ■

Mr C. M. Hume, Dominion Supervisor of the Group Herd Testing Fedpratibn, who hla.s bo(eu making lip’s annual visit to the Otago and Southland groups, states that group herdtesting was making rapid strides in Otago and Southland, where a very great increase in the number of cows under test were- reported. He said that the number of herds showing an average of over 3001 b. of butt/eyfa.t was steadily rising, and instanced the figures of the Stirling group, in similar country to South Canterbury. In that group the herd with the highest average butter-fat production per cow For the past season was tlia-t cf Mr W. Stiven (Parethi), with 42 cows averaging 3771 b. each in 258 days. Then came Mr Baird (Milton), 30 cows with 3581 b. in 254 days. The third blest herd was that .of Mr Mosley" (Inch Clutha), 74 cows giving 3171 b. in. 231 clays: followed by Davidson Bros. (Milton), 36 cows, averaging 3161 b. butter-fat in 240 days.