STATE NOT BOUND

Waikato Times, Volume 121, Issue 20259, 30 July 1937, Page 9

STATE NOT BOUND

EFFICIENCY ACT. ACTIVITIES OF BUREAU. “UNJUSTIFIABLE EXEMPTION.” The increased prominence which is being given to the activities of the Bureau of Industry under the Industrial Efficiency Act gives rise to questions of considerable public importance in relation to the application of the Act to industry (says a statement by the Associated Chambers of Commerce of New Zealand). For instance, it is a serious omission that there is nothing in the Act which provides that it shall bind the Crown. In other words, none of the manufacturing activities in which the State engages now or at any future time may be brought under the plans which may at any time be applied to the private units in particular industries. Consequently, those activities engaged in by the State, such as the manufacture of goods by the railways work- | shops in competition with private enterprise; coal-mining, timber-milling, the operation of quarries, etc., will not come under the review of the Bureau of Industry as the firms with which those activities compete will do. It is not open to the Bureau to investigate or to show whether the State is efficient or inefficient in its manufacturing methods. -Even though private concerns may be refused licenses by the Bureau, and forced to close down, State enterprises may not be touched. The effect will be to discharge these State undertakings from the charge of Inefficiency, redundancy and uneconomic operation without ever bringing them to trial and bearing the evidence. Wider Than Manufacturing. However, this is not all. It is not merely the State’s manufacturing enterprises which are excluded from the scope of the Act. The interpretation in the Act of the word "industry” is given to include “any trade, occupation, business, manufacture, works or any service of any kind whatsoever.” There could be nothing more comprehensive' than this. The Bureau could decide to regulate and license banking, money-lending, legal work and trusteeship, insurance, printing, and so on. Despite the fact that the State engages in all these activities, as well as, many others, the Bureau of Industry' has no power to deal with any of them, but must confine itself to the private concerns which are engaged in such activities. How can such a lop-sided, position bring about. Just, equitable and -comprehensive decisions by the Bureau, and achieve the stated objeot of the Act, which is. inter alia, “so to regulate the general organisation, development and operation of industries that a greater measure of industrial efficiency will be secured ?”

If there Is going to be any regulation or wiping out of units in industry, or in other gainful occupations under the powers provided by the Act, then it is the height of injustice for Stale undertakings, which enjoy no inherent merit whatever over private enterprise. to be excluded and rendered immune from such regulation and elimination. Already private business concerns are at a serious disadvantage because of the same rent, rates, taxes, and other charges and conditions which they have to meet not being required of State trading undertakings which are competitive with them. These State enterprises will be doubly strengthened if, continuing to enjoy their speoial and unfair taxation privileges, they are able to operate at will and whim in a field in which competition has been deliberately weakened and reduced by application of the Act’s restrictive powers to the compoting private businesses. New State Enterprises? Thirdly, when any “industry” (in the wide sense given in Ihe Act) has been thoroughly tied down with regulations and restrictions, and. perhaps when some of the units have been refused licenses to continue in operation, there is nothing to prevent the State from (1) expanding its own activities in that industry, and (2) instituting new enterprises. Indeed, such a development was frankly foreshadowed by the Leader of the Legislative Council (lion. M. Fagan) in the Council last year when the Industrial Efficiency Bill was under criticism.

According to Hansard, the Minister said: “There is nothing in the Bill to bind the Crown. I would say that the question of competition from State works in any given direction will eventually have to come under review, hut I would like to be quite frank and state that while there will perhaps be need of co-ordination between certain State enterprises and private enterprise in any line of manufacture, anrl while I say it may be necessary from time to time to co-operate as far as possible as between Slate and private enterprise in the same category, the day may come when it will be necessary for Ihe State to strike out on its own in any enterprise in Ihe public interest, and. al that point, whether it, pavs duly, sales lax. exchange and all Ihe oilier laves mentioned, that also affects Ihe policy of Ihe Government.