Comment From The Capital Ironsand Research; Mr Martin To Leave

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29301, 5 September 1960, Page 12

Comment From The Capital Ironsand Research; Mr Martin To Leave

[From our Wellington Correspondent}

WELLINGTON, Sept. 4. Mr W. R. B. Martin, whose seven years of research into the potentialities of New Zealand's ironsand deposits mainly caused the upsurge of interest in the establishment of an iron and steel industry, will leave for Australia on Tuesday. It is unlikely that he will return. As far as is known, there has been no invitation to Mr Martin to take part in the investigation recently approved by the Government into the feasibility of such an industry. Mr Martin has handed over the results of his investigations to the- Government, but there has been no suggestion that he should stay on and' co-operate with the corporation now formed under the chairmanship of Mr W. Fisher, of Auckland.

Mr Martin, who is a highly qualified chemical engineer, will say nothing on the position—or on the Government's reaction to certain remarks he made three months ago when the research centre he had maintained at Victoria University for the previous seven years was closed to him. He then accused the Government of “pirating” the results of his research, and added that the present Government, which had previously looked closely into the project and decided it was not feasible, had behaved like a spoilt child by wanting it back as soon as research showed promise.

To this the Prime Minister (Mr Nash) replied by giving details of the moneys. including an Imperial Chemical Industries fellowship, university research grants and scholarships, by which Mr Martin was assisted to continue with his research.

It has been suggested that Mr Martin’s honorary directorship of a New Zealand private-enter-prise company formed for the purpose of investigating the feasibility of an iron and steel industry has had something to do with his unpopularity in certain Government and departmental circles.

This company, the New Zealand Development Corporation, was refused permission by the Capital Issues Committee to raise on the New Zealand market funds with which to buy an interest in the investigating company originally proposed by the Government. When the allocation of shares in the Government-sponsored company was announced at a “secret” meeting of applicants, the reaction by New Zealand interests was such that the proposal was abandoned and the present Government company set up. Mr Nash has denied that the Government directed the Capital Issues Committee to withhold permission from a private concern wishing to raise capital for iron industry participation, and the deputy-secretary of the Treasury has said that the committee’s decision was made “in the light of prescribed criteria.”

It is known that, as far as it has gone, the Government investigation has proceeded exactly along the lines pioneered by Mr Martin. It has not yet reached the stage at which the New Zealand Development Corporation was stopped by legislation two years ago, when arrangements were being made for the shipment of significant quantities of ironsand and New Zealand coal overseas for production testing in existing furnaces in Norway.

The results of seven years of research by Mr Martin are now in Government hands. Mr Martin himself will take no further part in this research, because there appears to be no future for him in it in New Zealand As a research engineer he has had some attractive offers in Australia. He will not take any of them up at present His first intention is to lecture at Melbourne University. Self-Taught Talent The name of the Waihi youngster who taught himself to play the violin and won his way into the National Youth Orchestra may now be revealed. He is Alexander Cowdell, aged 15. “This boy really has something.” said Mr Vincent Aspey, leader and first violinist of the National Orchestra, before this afternoon’s charity concert by the Youth Orchestra. “His playing. and particularly his sightreading. have impressed me from the start. I still do not quite understand how he achieved the standard he has reached."

Mr Aspey confirmed that the boy was self-taught “The tape recording that was sent down to us originally was so good that we did not really believe he was self-taught,” he said. “His achievement has been remarkable, indeed, and his promise is even greater.” Alexander Cowdell comes from a family no member of which has a deep interest ih music. He himself is enthusiastic about “most things,” including sports and athletics, but is prevented from full participation in games because of slight lameness after poliomyelitis. After coaching him during his earlier appearance in Wellington during the tutorial session of the Youth Orchestra, Mr Aspey made him a present of a new bow and chinrest for his violin. Election Date Secret Tire announcement by Mr G. L. Barker that Election Day would probably be Wednesday. November -23, has raised a storm of protest in Lower Hutt, New Zealand’s fifth-largest city and MrNash’s electorate. Mr Barker, who is deputy Mayor of Lower Hutt, reached his conclusion after noting that the Lower Hutt Town Hall had been booked by the Labour Party for November 2 and 3 and reflecting that normally Mr Nash begins his campaign 21 days before Election Day. The validity of this deduction is denied by the president of the Hutt Labour Representation Committee. Mr H. C. Werry, who is also a Hutt city councillor. Mr Werry claims to be “as much in the dark as Mr Barker” about the date of the election, though he is Mr Nash’s chairman. He also charged Mr Barker with using his privileged position as a Hutt councillor to peruse the Town Hall bookings. Mr Werry disclosed that there are also Labour bookings for the Town Hall for October 26 and 27 (which could suggest an election date of November 19 on Mr Barker's reasoning), and that all other halls have been booked tentatively. One of them, Epuni Hall, has been booked on six nights for two intended meetings.

Opinion in Parliament Buildings is still that there is more likelihood of polling day being on a Saturday than on a Wednesday, and that November 26 is still the likeliest date. Life Of Parliament At the end of the Parliamentary week on Friday the Order Paper was cluttered with 26 bills in various stages. To give effect to declared Government intentions, some 12 to 14 more Bills are waiting to be brought down. Last week, by calling urgency, the Government disposed of the two most controversial measures so far; but when urgency was omitted the House dropped back to its snail's pace, with the result that the Animals Protection Bin, a measure about which there is little serious disagreement, is still on the Order Paper. ~2’ he takln K of urgency has had little effect on the progress of Estimates mainly because, though the Prime Minister (Mr Nash) invariably “sets the main” at six to eight classes of Estimates, he adds the proviso that "reasonable progress” may lead to a reconsideration.

So far a mere 18 classes of Estimates have been approved—a poor return for three weeks of Parliamentary discussion. To put *t another way. the Estimates In the hands of four Ministers (Messrs Nash, Skinner, Nondmeyer, and Fox) have been completed, and those of two other Ministers (Messrs Moohan and Hackett) have been partly completed—and there are 16 Ministers. At this rate, at least six weeks more will be required before all the Estimates are passed. At Dresent the consideration of Estimates is taking up two days of the four-day Parliamentary week, e’rtend the time taken on Estimates would reduce the time which would be no

Members on both sides of the House hope for the session to end a week before Labour Day weekend, allowing for writs 7 to be issued and genera] clearances mnow f ° r ’ Novemb «’ election to lenrth f campaign of normal rfrS 6 !? As things stand, this will not be an easy goal to achieve.