Over-Priced Goods Housewives Rally On Boycott Plan

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31255, 30 December 1966, Page 1

Over-Priced Goods Housewives Rally On Boycott Plan

(Hew Zealand Press Association)

AUCKLAND, December 29.

Hundreds of calls of support have been received and the Campaign Against Rising Prices, an organisation of Auckland housewives, plans to start its campaign early next year.

Plans for the campaign in the coming year include the boycotting of certain goods, representations to manufacturers and the Government and public protest meetings, says the campaign secretary, Mrs G. J. Schmidt.

“We expect to enlist the support of most New Zealand women for our campaign,” said Mrs Schmidt. “Most husbands are behind us also.

“We hear that a similar organisation has been set up in Wellington already.”

Essential products that are unfairly priced, particularly those needed by children, will be the first target of the boycotting campaign. “We will start with public meetings in small areas and build up to one large protest meeting, possibly in the town hall.”

Mrs Schmidt said replies

had been received to letters written to the Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) and the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Kirk). The Minister of Industries and Commerce (Mr Marshall) had telephoned the campaign from Wellington.

“We will also write to Miss Mabel Howard,” said Mrs Schmidt. “She is a fighting woman.”

The campaign president, Mrs F. A. Humphries, said the organisation would also wage war on the price of fish and selling gimmicks which raised the prices of consumer goods. Mrs Humphries said similar organisations in Britain, Canada and the United States had met with tremendous success in helping keep prices down.