Wool Board seat lost

Press, 17 August 1978, Page 3

Wool Board seat lost

The balance of producer representation on the Woql Board yesterday swung in the favour of the North Island. A sitting member, Mr R. H. M. Johnston, of Oxford, lost an election in which two North Island candidates were returned to the board. Now the board has four North Islanders and two South Islanders. The election yesterday occurred as a result of Messrs Johnston and A. G. Lawrence, of Tinui, in Wairarapa, having completed their three-year terms. They sought re-election and there was also a new candidate,!

Mr G. M. Evans, of Gisborne. In the election, in which the candidates appear before the board’s electoral committee, Messrs Lawrence and Evans were elected. Mr Johnston, who farms at Ashley Gorge has served only one term on the board, although he was two years on the electoral committee before that. The new board member, Mr Evans, is aged 46. He is farm supervisor of the Mangatu Incorporation, one of the biggest blocks of Maori lands farmed in New Zealand. He was a field officer with the Department of I Agriculture at Gisborne, and

five years ago won a Churchill award, to visit the United States. He is also a director of the Rural Bank. Mr Lawrence until recently was deputy-chair-man of the board. The other North Island producer members are Messrs P. T. Bary and J. B. Chrystall. The South Island producer members are now the chairman, Mr J. Clarke, and the deputy-chair-man, Mr J. D. Mcllraith. It has been something of an axiom that a geographical balance is taken into account in electing members to the Wool Board and the status quo has been upset.