Manufacturers Pressing For More Migrants

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31062, 18 May 1966, Page 13

Manufacturers Pressing For More Migrants

The council of the Canterbury Manufacturers’ Association decided to ask the New Zealand Manufacturers’ Federation to get its economist to sift out the major points in favour of increasing New Zealand’s immigration.

“We must see that we do the job thoroughly ourselves and keep pushing for the increasing of immigration,” said the association’s president (Mr C. W. Mace). “It is up to us to make a further study.” Mr J. K. Dobson said that the Government’s action in the Tongariro issue was surely an acknowledgement that New Zealand had insufficient labour.

Mr W. H. Price said that the argument against immigration had been that it was inflationary, that lack of schools, hospital, and housing might follow.

“Surely over-riding all that is that we live in an underpopulated, overfed country,” said Mr Price. Mr Price said that he could see no social reason for not taking a risk with some of these problems on the advice of experts. Mr E. P. Chapman said he thought it would be much more fruitful to hammer for increased immigration on the basis of increased production “Maybe the Government does not want to increase production,” said Mr Chapman. “Perhaps we should try some other line of argument in favour of immigration, such as the strategic situation or that we have not got enough labour to produce for export.”

The association also decided that it wanted a statement through the federation from th“ Minister of Labour (Mr Shand) as to when he war going to make a policy statement on increased immigration. Some members suggested that this would not be till Mr Shand had studied a report from the Monetary and Eco nomic Council.