IMMIGRATION Agreement With Report

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31210, 7 November 1966, Page 11

IMMIGRATION Agreement With Report

(N.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON, November 4. Criteria put forward by the Monetary and Economic Council in its special report on immigration were broadly those which had been used by the Government, the Minister of Immigration (Mr Shand) said today.

Mr Shand said that for some years the Government had been under continuous pressure to expand assisted immigration as a cure for labour shortages. The Government had held the view, however, that the effects of increased immigration in New Zealand’s present economic position would have the “reverse effect of heightening labour shortages while, at the same time, in-

creasing the demand for imports and balance-of-payments difficulties.”

Some of the points made by the Vernon Committee in Australia appeared to confirm this in a general way, but the Government had decided to ask the Monetary and Economic Council to make an independent investigation of the effects of immigration with specific reference to New Zealand.

“The report now published is very thorough,” said Mr Shand. It was probably the best study of the topic yet made in New Zealand. “Broadly the criteria set forward by the council are those which have been used by the Government although it has to be appreciated that immigration policy has to have some flexibility and criteria may have to be applied more loosely or more strictly from time to time to meet changing conditions,” he said. “In fact, at present it

would be most difficult to obtain 4000 assisted immigrants a year without being somewhat liberal in interpreting the criteria.”