The Press FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 1947. Immigration

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25085, 17 January 1947, Page 6

The Press FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 1947. Immigration

The report of the select committee on the population of the Dominion, tabled in the House of Representatives shortly before the dissolution of the last Parliament, calls for the early and urgent attention of the new House. It is now more than 13 months since the committee was appointed and in that time New Zealand has fallen further behind the rest of the world in the bid for population. Fortunately, at least one representative and influential body, has made it its business to jog the memory of the Government and of Parliament on this question and plans to do so again before the first session of the new House of Representatives, ’t'his is the Christchurch Expansion and Development Committee, which, perturbed by the growing shortage of manpower and womanpower in its district and dissatisfied with the timid recommendations of the select committee, circularised all members of Parliament asking for their opinions on immigration. Only 15 members, five of them Cabinet Ministers, replied; and though the Expansion and Development Committee did not forget that the General Election was rushing upon them, it was disquieted to find them, as it seemed, so apathetic. The committee decided to call a conference of local bodies and representative institutions in the hope of obtaining wider and more vigorous support for its immediate immigration policy. New Zealand’s rapidly growing industries have outpaced the labour supply. If the Parliamentary committee saw this clearly, saw how wide the gap is now and how fast it is widening, it seems not to have been sufficiently impressed by what it saw. Mr T. H. Langford, public relations officer of the Christchurch City Council, has found that existing industries in Christchurch are short of some 4300 hands. Industries about to begin production or planned to begin production in the next 18 months will need another 1800 workers. The evidence he has indicates that new and expanding industries in the next 18 months will call for another 2000. In Christchurch alone, therefore, 6000 additional workers will be needed in the next 18 months and 8000 within three years. New Zealand needs immigrants." The only questions are: where are they to come from; how are they to be brought here; and how are they to. be housed? Rightly, the Parliamentary committee said that immigrants of British stock are to be preferred; rightly again, it set forward the truth that Britain, already short of manpower, cannot afford to lose large drafts of it by immigration. But Britain is bound to lose those who are dissatisfied or restless. If they do not come to New Zealand they will go to another Dominion, to the British colonies, or even to foreign countries; and they are going. Australia, Canada, and South Africa are holding their doors wide open; New Zealand’s door is just ajar—and wedged. Australia and South Africa are seeking immigrants from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Holland; Australia is negotiating to the same end with Switzerland. The British countries are not the only ones seeking population. Argentina has sen£ a mission to Europe, looking for 4,000,000 immigrants. Other South American states want immigrants too. In Australia the use of aircraftcarriers as immigrant ships has been suggested. The New Zealand ana Australian Governments could well discuss this together and make joint representations to the British Government. For both Australia and New Zealand the present manpower shortage is an emergency. Emergency measures, both for the transport and housing of suitable immigrants, are justified and called for. Neither difficulty is insuperable.