Woollens, Plastics Industries Protest

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31333, 1 April 1967, Page 3

Woollens, Plastics Industries Protest

The New Zealand plastics industry would have extreme difficulty in meeting the demands of other industries for materials and components, said the president of the Plastics Institute of New Zealand (Mr H. T. W. Nolan)

yesterday. Present indications were that the plastics industry generally would have very much reduced stocks at the start of the next licensing period. Reduction of normal stocks to dangerously low levels had cushioned the effects of the 1966-67 cuts, and the full impact of the two 20 per cent cuts in two successive licensing schedules would be concentrated in the coming year. This could mean a fall of nearly one-third in production, but it was considered that the 1967-68 allocations of plastic raw materials would be insufficient to meet even the reduced demand.

The institute, he said, had decided to postpone the third national plastics show to have been held in Christchurch from October 31 to November 3. The show would now be held when the country's economy had recovered to a stage at which the industry could properly support such a major promotion. Mr Nolan said that the plastics industry protested strongly that plastics materials had been cut back while Government expenditure had not been subjected to the same restriction. “Severe Treatment” The “savage cut” of 25 per cent for imported woollen piece-goods meant that woollens had been singled out for

particularly severe treatment, said the regional director of the New Zealand Fashion House Group (Mr B. Zeff) yesterday. “We are down from 7 million yards in 1965 to 65 per cent of 3 million yards imported in 1965-66-,” Mr Zeff said. This is a disaster for those members of my group who make the better end of fashion garments and whose inability now to purchase fine fabrics from Yorkshire and other overseas centres can only mean a grave shortage of coats and suits of quality. "On the other hand the import of fabrics made from synthetics, cottons, and rayons is exempt from licensing. It is difficult for the trade and the public to understand why woollens are not given preference.

"Cutting licences for woollens, while leaving other fabrics exempt, is a step in tbe wrong direction for a country whose main export is wool,” said Mr Zeff.