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WELLINGTON TOPICS.

THE QUESTION OF THE DAY. PRICE OF BUTTER. (Special Correspondent.) Wellington, March 30. A question of more than passing interest to wage-earners and housewives is being discussed by a conference of producers and dairy factory representatives sitting in Palmerston North to-day. It is the price of butter on the expiration of the Imperial contract to-morrow. Since that contract was made at the beginning of the season the producers have receiving 2/6 a pound for their butter while the consumers have been buying it from the retailers at 2/3 a pound. This lessened price to the consumers has been made possible by the Government subsidy of 6d a pound, one half of which has been employed in reducing the local price and the other half in covering the cost of handling. The net effect of this, of course, has been to give the consumers their butter at 6d a pound cheaper than they would have got it without the subsidy and to add a corresponding amount to the public expenditure. Briefly put, the butter consumers have received cheapened butter at the expense of the general taxpayers, and as the butter consumers are largely the general taxpayers the operation has amounted to little more than transferring money from one pocket to another with perhaps a little leakage during the process.

THE FUTURE. Of course the conference being held in Palmerston North to-day will not necessarily settle the price for the future. The producers will have a free market from Friday, that is they will be able to offer their butter how and where they please. But their demand in the past has been for a price corresponding with the price they could obtain at Home. “London parity” has been the burden of their claim. But with the advent of the northern spring and a largely increased production the “London parity” is not half so attractive as it was when the seasons in the two hemispheres were reversed. At present it would give the local producers about 2b a pound. An embargo has been placed upon the export from the Dominion during the mid-winter months and even with this precaution it may be necessary to make some demands upon the Imperial supplies in store. The producers, therefore, are insisting that the “London parity” should no longer operate and that they should be given a-price to cover the additional cost of winter production. Thip is the point to-day’s conference is pressing upon the attention of the Government. COAL DISPUTE. Now that the holidays are over the public is turning its attention again to the long standing coal dispute to find that it is drifting into what threatens to become a very grave crisis. The owners have declared they will not meet the men in conference till the latter withdraw their demands for the abolition of the contract system, a six-hour day from bank to bank, a five-day week, the abolition of the afternoon shift, payment for holidays and payment for time lost, and the secretary of the Miners’ Federation has reiterated the determination of the men to stand by their demands. Just before the holidays the Federation presented what it would have had the Aline Owners’ Association regard as an ultimatum, declaring that unless a conference .were arranged within seven days to diseqss the claim for a new agreement the Federation would take such steps as it might deem necessary to force a conference. Unless the men are merely putting up a big bluff the position is an extremely perilous one and it is not pleasant to contemplate what may happen during the next few weeks if the parties remain as determined as they appear to be at the present time. THE NEW POLITICAL PARTY. In a reference to the National Progressive and Moderate Labor League appearing. in the Dominion this morning, it is stated that preliminary meetings for the discussion of the proposal to form the new party have been held in several centres within recent months. At least one such meeting was held in Wellington during the short session of Parliament, and was attended by seme of the Independent members of the House of Representatives. These members, who went by invitation, met some business men and took part in a general discussion. But they did not understand that any definite decision had been reached, and some of the members, at least, have been surprised to find within the last few days that the party is now in possession of a general organiser and an acting-president, as well as an acting executive, consisting presumably of the men who initiated the movement. These are facts which have been genera ally known for some time, but it is not correct to imply that the promoters of the movement have appointed themselves office bearers in the new party.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TDN19210402.2.62

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Taranaki Daily News, 2 April 1921, Page 6

Word count
Tapeke kupu
804

WELLINGTON TOPICS. Taranaki Daily News, 2 April 1921, Page 6

WELLINGTON TOPICS. Taranaki Daily News, 2 April 1921, Page 6

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