"NO UNDERSTANDING OF DISTRICT'S REAL NEEDS"

Taupo Times, Volume XIV, Issue 51, 1 July 1965, Page 1

"NO UNDERSTANDING OF DISTRICT'S REAL NEEDS"

Taupo's Parliamentary representative, Mrs Rona Stevenson, had shown a "pitiful lack of understanding" of the real needs of the district farmers in her statement in the House of Representatives last week, said Mr €. J. N. Newbold, chairman of the Taupo branch of the Labour Party, speaking at Mokai on Saturday. He was guest speaker at a meeting of the recently-formed Mokai-Tirohanga branch.

He went on to sav that Mrs Stevenson's congratulations to Mr Lake on the Budget fertiliser f r e i g h t concessions would fool no practical farmer. "This small incentive is a weak, shameful apology for a progressive, bold poliey that the Government should — and most certainly could — be following," said Mr Newbold. "In contrast to this failure to meet the means of an expanding farm production p r o g ramme, the recent Labour party conference in Wellington unanimously reaffirmed its policy of direct fertiliser subsidy. "The rejection by the Minister of Agriculture, Mr Talboys, last week of further incentives for increased farm production highlights the National Government's real aims in promoting vested interests at the expense of the genuine working farmer. "Mr Talb»oy's argument that a fertiliser subsidy would benefit the farmer with a large income is nonsense and subtly misleading — the high incpme farmer would pay most of it back in tax anyway, but not so with the tax concessions already given by the Government. "These are clearly designed to favour the established

wealthy supporter of the National Government. "This attitude is incompatible with National Government's tax concessions to businessmen and compahies whereby they can spend profits from commercial enterprises free-of tax on land development and so build up non-taxable capital assets." he said. "Under National Government, large companies and large business houses are making unprecedented profits. Not only does the Government encourage this with their emphasis on the greed motive of money, profits and dividends, but goes further and legislates for these self-same people to invest these profits in this country's most priceless asset — land.'*