Bert Kelly, “Watchdog barking up wrong tree,”
The Bulletin, November 2, 1982, p. 115.

I am continually startled and saddened by the pathetic dependence of industry leaders on government intervention. Recently, I attended a seminar arranged by the Agricultural Engineering Society in conjunction with the Elmore Machinery Field Day in Northern Victoria. One of the speakers was James Magorcks of Hamilton, a real little Aussie battler who told of his trials and successes in making and selling a small number of big custom built tractors. Such people clearly are filling a gap in the market.

Farmers do not pay money for tractors just because their makers are nice people.

The farmers do it because they think it pays them to.

The main speaker at the seminar was Noel Howard, general manager of Ford tractor operations, a high-powered and personable young man. His main complaint was that too many makes and models of tractors (369) were being sold in Australia by the 43 manufacturers and importers and that the expense of selling and servicing this spectrum resulted in everyone in the trade getting the stick.

This would mean, in the end, he said, that farmers also would be hurt because the kind of service we are getting would be beyond the range of a weakened dealer.

Howard’s other complaint was that too many farmers were buying their tractors directly from overseas, avoiding the dealers’ commission and service charges. He warned us that not only would this practice weaken the dealers still further but also that farmers involved would find themselves without service and spare parts back-up when the inevitable machinery breakdowns occurred.

Dealing with this last matter first, I think Howard’s warning was justified and that farmers who import direct should do it with their eyes open. But this should be a matter on which the farmer makes his own judgment. I certainly don’t think — nor did Howard — that it is a government responsibility to shelter farmers from the results of their own decisions.

However, Howard’s main concern was the large number of makes and models of tractors being sold here. He may well be right but, surely, the best way to sort out the problem is to let market forces operate. They seem to have started doing this with International Harvester Company. Howard’s solution did startle me … first, he wants a high-level inquiry into the tractor industry to tell us what ought to be done. I tried to get under the table when I heard this, being now very nervous when inquiries are mentioned.

The government would have some difficulty in getting anyone to serve on such a body.

I am prepared to offer Fred up on this altar but I don’t suppose he would be suitable.

I now quote from Howard’s paper:

The tractor industry believes that to achieve the maximum benefit for the farmer, the Australian tractor industry must be regulated.

The regulations should, firstly, be promulgated by the independent inquiry which I called for earlier. The inquiry should be appointed by the Department of Primary Industry but the implementation of the regulations and code of ethics for the industry would then be the responsibility of the Tractor and Machinery Association of Australia. I see this body having powers similar to the Australian Medical Association and other professional bodies and they would make certain that proper regulation and ethics were complied with.

If you like, an industry watchdog committee that can bite.

So, the government is expected to hand to the tractor industry the responsibility of keeping some people out of the industry and letting others in. And the industry body is to be imbued with the same ethical standards as activate the AMA and it is to be supplied with teeth.

And the government is to stand by benignly, making such regulations as are thought to be necessary to make sure that the feather bed does not get too lumpy or too crowded.

The picture of the gigantic Ford organisation on its knees, asking for more government intervention, is not new. It seems to spend more time bending its knees than its back.

But I wonder how old Henry Ford would regard one of the progeny of his vast organisation which was finding the competition of a little Aussie battler from Hamilton hard to handle.

Henry Ford used to catch and kill his own. The present management seems to expect the government to do it for them.

When the going gets tough, the tough get going!