A Victory For Common Sense

Thursday 16 Oct 2003 Gerry Eckhoff Press Releases -- Rural

ACT New Zealand Rural Affairs Spokesman Gerry Eckhoff today congratulated farmers for their efforts in forcing Climate Control Convenor Pete Hodgson to make an embarrassing U-turn on his proposal to introduce a tax on livestock emissions.

"I would like to recognise the tremendous efforts of Federated Farmers - particularly President Tom Lambie, Tony Sinclair and Catherine Petrie - for their contribution in bringing about an end to this nonsense," Mr Eckhoff said.

"Throughout this campaign, ACT New Zealand has shown it is the only party that has consistently stood up for farmers. Our petition and bus tour served to ignite public opinion and highlight the plethora of taxes Labour has imposed on rural New Zealand.

"Mr Hodgson has finally admitted - after months of protest from the rural community - that he was wrong. He has acknowledged what farmers have been telling him - that the industry has been pulling its weight and spending millions on research into methane gas reductions.

"This is excellent news. Ministers' Hodgson and Jim Sutton could have saved themselves a lot of grief if they had done their homework before proposing this discriminatory tax on New Zealand's productive sector.

"Farmers can breathe a sigh of relief that this ill-considered tax has been dropped. This mess has shown farmers that Labour does not understand the rural sector. Farmers may forgive, but not forget Labour's actions - it has proven to be no friend of rural New Zealand," Mr Eckhoff said.

ENDS

For more information visit ACT online at http://www.act.org.nz or contact the ACT Parliamentary Office at act@parliament.govt.nz.

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