POWER COSTS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 18 May 1943, Page 2

POWER COSTS

NEED OF CHEAPER FARM SERVICE. MR L. T. DANIELL’S CONTENTION. “That city dwellers and city industrialists who get their electric current at low prices be charged the same as town and country dwellers, so that power boards will be able to. distribute current to every agricultural holding at the same price as city dwellers,” was a remit for the Palmerston North conference passed by the Wairarapa Provincial Executive of the Farmers’ Union yesterday afternoon. “The whole country was mortgaged years back to instal the hydro-electric powei- schemes, but we are being forced once again to subsidise the cities just as we are with the woollen mills. Country districts have to pay an average of £8 per unit as against £5 for city areas, that is to say, we give them a 25 yards start in every hundred every morning, with no chance of ever catching up,” said Mr L. T. Daniell. “It was freely expected that when profits were made from the undertaking, monies in hand would be spent in reticulating, country districts, and even up the han-' dicap with these funds from the main hydro schemes. Instead, heavy taxation has been levied, and a city Minister of Finance has taken many hundreds of thousands from the fund. It seems there are some who are not averse to seeing farming go back to depressed conditions. Cabinet must finally see that the interests of the city dweller should not be selfishly separated from the interests of rural production.” v Y