“AN INIQUITOUS THING”

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 169, 7 October 1927, Page 16

“AN INIQUITOUS THING”

CUSTOMS AMENDMENT BILL MERCHANTS PROTEST (Special to THE SUN.) NAPIER, Thursday. Dissatisfaction with clauses of the Customs Amendment Bill, particularly those dealing with tho clearance of goods from bond, was expressed at a meeting of the Napier Chamber of Commerce today. It was agreed to forward the following resolution to the Prime Minister and the Associated Chambers of Commerce:— “This chamber strongly protests against the introduction of clauses giving the Customs Department power to regulate clearances of goods and providing for the payment of additional duty upon goods already cleared ,ii being considered that such action is an interference witji the restriction upon trade and too arbitrary a power to be placed in the hands of the collectors of customs.” In anticipation of these changes, said Mr. S. H. Tuck, all merchants throughout New Zealand cleared goods out of bond, and by that che Government reaped thousands of pounds in duty. Now the merchants had to carry those large stocks forward, and t was they who were losing interest on their capital. “To my mind,” he continued, “this is an iniquitous thing. The Government is interfering with our business problems and dictating to us. They arc our goods, and if we want to take them out of bond or leave them there, we should be able to please ourselves.