ENGLISH CARS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 266, 10 November 1933, Page 5

ENGLISH CARS.

NUMERICAL MAJORITY.

ILLUMINATING FIGURES.

STATEMENT REFUTED.

(By Telegraph.—Parliamentary Reporter.)

WELLINGTON, this day.

The remarkable increase in the number of British cars imported to the Dominion was quoted in the House yesterday afternoon in refutation of the cabled comments by Mr. T. Baxter, who recently visited New Zealand to urge the regulation of dairy exports. It was shown that for the first nine months of the present year 1404 British cars were imported, while for the same time ttie number of foreign cars brought into the Dominion was only 36. The subject was raised by Mr. E. Healy (Coalition United, Wairau), who asked if the Prime Minister proposed to take steps to reply to the misleading statement made by Mr. Baxter. After saying he would be glad to see what could be done to correct the false impression, the Prime. Minister, the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes, remarked that it was quite clear that Mr. Baxter had made a general statement, which was not borne out by facts. He was probably not aware that one of the reasons why American cars were used so largely in the past was that at that time the British manufacturer was not making a car suitable to conditions existing in New Zealand. Of late years, British manufacturers had met the special requirements of the Dominion, and the Customs returns showed that, since then, British cars had been purchased in increasing numbers, and now formed a large percentage of the total number of cars imported. The following figures were quoted by the Prime Minister to emphasise the point: — MOTOR CAR IMPORTS. United Kingdom. Foreign. toon , 2867 2001 „,, '~.,.■ 1702 469 hll "*...r... 2147 144 •IMS A* montns only) I*os Jj- : 3*