Ey WN

: F RACES
IVa ar CHAIRMAN OF FOOD | PRICE ED

ty

NEWS ITEM: The $40,000-a-year chairman of the federal Prices Review
Board, Beryl Plumptre says the news media is creating apanicover
food price-gouging, and if the consumer feels a commodity has been
unjustifiably marked up in price “the public doesn’t have to buy it.”’

Unionists ask gov't.
action on Chile coup

Cont'd. from pg. 1

union dues out of so-called reli-
gious belief or to engage inany
other attack on the principles of
trade unionism.”

Stewart cited newspaper re-
ports which indicated that the
provincial government was
going to introduce legislation
which would allow workers to ab-
stain from membership or dues-
paying for religious reasons
and would be allowed to pay an
equivalent amount to a reli-
gious organization or charity
instead of their legitimate trade
union.

‘The inference hereisthata
trade union is an instrument of
the devil,’’ Stewart declared.
“But we are not an organization
that oppresses— in our unions
we have Presbyterians, Angli-
cans, Catholics, every religious
denomination.

‘‘We are not the military
junta in Chile that crushes every

political and religious belief
contrary to its own,” he stated.
‘Weare, infact, among the 5000
on trial in Chile who had the
temerity to fight for the aspira-
tions of trade unionism.”

Hugh Comber of the Bakery
Workers called thereferred-to
legislation ‘completely — un-
necessary” and added that it
would only ‘‘give credence toa
fink organization that we have
fought all down the years.”

Comber was speaking of the
Christian Labor Associationof
Canada which made repre-
sentation to labor minister
King’s inquiry into labor-
management relations asking
for such legislation.

The Christian Labor Asso-
ciation has conducted several
raids on the Bakery Workers
and has been in collusion with
the employer in each instance
to reduce wages and increase
the hours of work.

This display of books, records and periodicals commemorating the 50th
anniversary of book publishing in the U.S.S.R. found a warm response
from visitors to the PNE earlier this month. The display, with several
new titles from the Soviet supplier, Mezhdunarodnaya Kniga, will be

' recreated ‘in the People’s: Co-op.
’ Vancouver. Sees

Bookstore, 341

West Pender in
—+Dorse McTaggart p

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1973—PAGE 12

After reviewing its part in the
country-wide campaign
launched last June by the Com-
munist Party of Canada to halt
profiteering and compel the
government to roll back prices,
the B.C. Provincial Committee
of the Party meeting in Van-
couver over the weekend, laid
plans to extend its efforts and
work fora much higher level of
membership participation.

‘‘The public response this sum-
mer has been tremendous, par-
ticularly around the Com-
munist Party booth at the Paci-
fic National Exhibition,’’ Pro-
vincial leader Nigel Morgan
reported to the weekend meet-
ing. ‘‘The B.C. membership
have already doubled their
pledge for distribution of the
Communist Party prices leaf-
let; many new members have
been signed up in both the Party
and the Young Communist
League.

‘‘With the vacation period
over; price increases con-
tinuing and going up ataneven
faster rate; and the Trudeau
government's so-called ‘‘anti-
inflation measures’’ exposed
for the sham and deluxion they
are, the possibilities for intensi-
fying the fight-back against infla-
tion and for curbing monopoly
are very real,”’ he said.

Morgan told the Committee,
‘*Prices rose more in August
than they have at any time inthe
last 22 years. Evenat the phoney
government count, prices have
risen 8.3% — 1% more than the
average wage increase. Inthe
same period average corporate
profits have jumped 35.4% — five

PRICES

Cont'd from pg. 1
tions jumped 128 percent inthe
last year, whichis the highest in
North America. A cross-Can-
ada survey shows a rise of 39
percent in profits for Canadian
corporations.

An illustration of the profit
gouge taking place was given in
Parliament Monday’ when
Grace MacInnis MP, pointed
out that B.C. Packers, which
dominates the salmon canning
industry inB.C., showed arise
in profits of 124 percent on a
sales increase of 25 percent in
the 24 week period ending June
17.

Meanwhile, the B.C. Com-
mittee of the Communist Party
met last weekend and adopted a
program of action to roll back
prices and curb profiteering.
(See story on this page. )

B.C. RAIL

cont'd. from pg. 1
the introduction of the labor
legislation — even if it meant
sacrificing the right of the rail
workers to free collective bargain-
ing.

That the Socred opposition, in
typical demogogic fashion: would
have exploited the dispute to at-
tack the government was a
foregone conclusion. But if princi-
ple is to be discarded to avoid giv-
ing the opposition an issue, it
becomes political expediency — a
capitulation to pressure from big
business and its. representatives’ in

* the Legislature. *s

times as fast as wages. And now
with the Bank of Canada upping
its interest rate for the fifth
time since April, and the
chartered banks jumping theirs
to 9% a new round of inflation is
inevitable.”’

To counter the profit gouge by
the country’s financial institu-
tions and monopoly interests, the
Provincial Committee laid plans
totakeits program of demands
to the Legislative Session in
Victoria and to _ support
proposals for a united front
‘*Roll Back Prices’’ March on Ot-
tawa to coincide with the

CP program for

prices rollback | |

The program of the Com-
munist Party to prevent price
rises and roll back prices.
includes the following major
demands:

e Invest the Food Prices
Review Board with regulatory
powers to roll back prices, prose-
cute the profiteers and extend
its jurisdiction to cover all con-
sumer goods.

e Nationalize the food pro-
cessing corporations, meat
packers and milling com-
panies, guaranteed and stable
prices for farmers.

e Reduce NHA mortgagesto
5 percent under government
guarantee.

e A $200 per month pension
for all senior citizens. Cost of
living escalator provisions ona
quarterly basis for pensions,
family allowances, mothers
and veterans’ allowances. free
of tax.

e Redistribute national in-
come through tax reform and
with periodic increases in social
benefit payments.

e A$3 per hour country-wide
minimum wage.

e@ Make the oil companies roll
back gasoline and oil prices to
January 1, 1973, and impose an
excess profit tax onall private
monopolies.

Dawson Developments Ltd.
of Vancouver reports profit
for the nine months ended
July 31 rocketed to $1,025,520
or 81 cents a share compared
with $174,623 or 16 cents a
-share on fewer shares a year
earlier.

The five-fold increase in
profit was gained from a_
gross revenue of $31.3 million

} compared with $17.5 million a.

year earlier. Dawson presi-
} dent J. W. Poole said the im-

Proved profit margin is the —
} result of more effective cost

Wonder why housing costs have gone up? Here’s one 0
reasons. Dawson Development Ltd., one of the largest real est

reopening of Parliament.

“A quarter-page advertise-
ment will be inserted in the daily
press: additional leaflets willbe
distributed and Community
Party clubs throughout B.C. are
being asked to adopt a shopping
centre in their community for
petitioning. A concentrated
effort is going to be made to wil
the support of trade union.
pensioner and other peoples

organization to exert pressure Ot [

the government for action toroll
back prices and cope with
inflation, which is reaching
crisis proportions.’ Morgal

stated following the day-long
meeting.

Dawson net shows
five-fold increase

_da. Current sales average

The B.C. Government madeit
clear Wednesday that it will act
to guarantee adequate supplies
of natural gas this winter !
Ottawa fails to take action
curb exports in view of reporte
shortages for B.C. consumers.

Attorney General Ales
Macdonald told the Legislature
he has senta telegram to Enerey
Minister Donald Macdonal
asking that the National Energy
Board ensure that B.C. be give?
priority in the event of a 83°
shortage. He said the people of
B.C. should come first in having
access to its own gas.

Protest called!

for Peace Arci

Environmentalists from both
sides of the border are planning
demonstration Sunday, Septem a
30 at 2 p.m. at Peace Arch Park eo
protest. the proposed U.S. super
tanker route along the west C0@™

The date is intended to coince ——

with the U.S.. Congressional V?
on the Trans-Alaskan pipeline, ~

market’ program and noe
enjoys the reputation of bei
the most experienced and SU
cessful marketer of condon
ium homes in western

units per week and ho
demand in Greater Vancou
shows signs of furth
strengthening, Poole noted
Dawson's commercia
‘sion is expanding vigor
according to the nine-|
report. Excavation
Depon for poe

ip
f them,

ate fit in

in B.C. reported last week that it enjoyed a five-fold increase in Prnts? é
themine month period upto July.3.1. Shares jumped from 4

year ago to 81 cents in September.

= Stepped-up drive against
high prices planned by CP¥

|}