CANDIDATES’ PROFILES Ashburton Boundary Changes

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30269, 23 October 1963, Page 14

CANDIDATES’ PROFILES Ashburton Boundary Changes

(Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, October 22. The three candidates for the Ashburton seat in the House of Representatives are the present member, Mr R. G. Gerard (National), Mr A. G. Braddick (Labour) and Mr A. W. Barwood (Social Credit). The Representation Com mission last year redrew the boundaries of the electorate West of Timaru it now includes a considerable part of the present Waitaki electorate and encompasses Lake Pukaki. In the easternmost comer of the electorate, the new boundary now runs along the Ashburton river, but includes the town of Ashburton. This puts a number of small towns north-east of Ashburton borough as far as Chertsey which were formerly in Ashburton into the Selwyn electorate. In the 1960 General Election the results were: Gerard (National) .. 8094 Glassey (Labour .. 5536 Hayes (Social Credit) .. 948 Informal .. .. 29

Total .. .. 14,607 There were 16,007 electors on the roll then. The population in the electorate increased from 25.862 at the 1956 census, to 30.503 according to die 1961 census and die redrawn boundaries. Mr Gerard has been a member of Parliament since he won the Mid-Canterbury seat from Labour. He is 59, is married, and has four sons

and a daughter. He was educated at Christ’s College and then worked as shepherd and farmhand. He was born at "Snowden” station in the Rakaia Gorge. He now has a 900-acre property at Mount Hutt, Rakaia. In 1950, Mr Gerard was appointed Junior Whip, and four years later was promoted to Senior Whip in the National Government Late in the term of the first National Government, he was appointed Minister of Marine and Social Security. He is now Minister of Marine. Forests. Lands, and is in charge of the Valuation Department. He is a keen fisherman and racehorse owner, and has been active in farmers’

Mr Braddick ia a department manager in a Fairlie

hardware shop. He is 57, married with eight children. Earlier he was a farm worker. In 1951 he stood for the Waimate seat and was a candidate for Waitaki in 1957 Mr, Braddick has been an officer in several local organisations in the Fairlie district. including the Mackenzie Highland Pipe Band, the Fairlie Domain Board, and the Aorangi Hall Committee. He has been president of the Fairlie branch of the Labour Party and president of the Ashburton Labour Representation Committee. Mr Braddick was educated at the Fairlie District High School. He is a session member of the St. Columba Presbyterian Church. Mr Barwood is standing for Parliament for the third time. He was candidate tor Waitaki in 1960 and again at the

by-election for that seat in 1962. He is a 49-year-old farmer with three daughters. Before he took up a small sheep and cropping farm at Fairlie two years ago he was a member of a family transport business. He also has a lime business. Mr Barwood has been interested in Social Credit for many years and is now on the Dominion council of the Social Credit League. He has been chairman of the Fairlie Town Committee and after serving in the Army in the Pacific, was president of the Fairlie branch of the R.S.A. His main recreation is bowls.

Galatara, a little hamlet in the central hills of Ceylon has been invaded by ants.— Reuter.