PUBLICITY ABROAD

Southland Times, Issue 19357, 24 September 1924, Page 6

PUBLICITY ABROAD

THE GOVERNMENT’S POLICY PRIME MINISTER’S STATEMENT (Our Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, September 23. A request for information as to what New Zealand was doing in the way of pubC’c ty abroad, led to a comprehensive statement on the Subject by the Prime Minister n the House of Representatives to-day. MEMBER FOR AWARUA. Under the nlea of urgency, Mr P. A. de la Pcrrelle (Awarua), asked, in view of the desire of the public bodies and the Press of New Zealand, that greater publicity should be ,given to *the unrivalled attract.ons of New Zealand from a tourist point of view, if the Prime Minister would give the House some indication of what the Government was doing in the matter, so that the great wealth of New Zealand’s magnificent scenery and other attractions should become known the world over. “The Tour.st Department estimates,” said Mr Perrelle, khat each visiting tourist spends £lOO, and that about 8000 tourists visit the Dominon every year. There is no reason why this number should not be increased to 80,000. Last year tourists spent £66,000,000 n Switzerland, and £100,000,000 in France, and it is estimated that American sightseers .eft £140,000,000 in Europe.” THE PREMIER’S REPLY. The Prime Minister said he had, since being notified of the question, looked into a few phases of the Government’s advertising policy abroad. “I can assure the House,” . a.d Mr Massey, “that the Government fully appreciates the importance of the necessity and benefit of effective and judicious adver--ising in countries outside the Dominion, and especially the countries of the Empire, i have already indicated that we will be lucky if we get out of the advertising campaign at the British Empire Exhibition with an outlay of £lOO,OOO, and I believe ihat we will get good results from it. Next year an Exhibition will be held in Dunedin, which has every prospect of being successful, and we may have to spend £30,000 or £40,000 there. New Zealand has never had such an active publicity campaign as it has now in actual progress,” continued the Prime Minister, who proceeded to detail some of the means adopted to make known the attractions of New Zealand, as a land as a pleasant halting place for the traveller of reward for capital and industry, as well .n search of health or pleasure. NEW ZEALANDERS ABROAD. Mr Massey said he believed that at the present moment there were no fewer than 20,000 New Zealanders in Great Britain, and that they were not only in the large centres, but had spread all over the United Kingdom. There was no better means of advertising than by our own people touring abroad. An hon. member: What about the All Blacks ? Mr Massey: They will be a credit to the Dominion, although they may not win all their matches, or do as well as their famous predecessors of 1905 did; but they will be excellent advertising agents for New Zealand. Another hon. member: How about Gloaming ? Mr Massey: Gloaming is all right, in his way, but I am not such a sport as my hon. friend. However, if I have a favourite among racehorses it is Gloaming.— (Laughter). Another hon. member: How about the Boy Scouts at the British Empire Exhibition ? Mr Massey: I have just received a very fine photograph of the march through London of the Boy Scouts in the Empire jamboree, and I was delighted to see that the New Zealand boys, bearing the N.Z. flag, were at the head of the procession.—(Hear, hear). Continuing, the Prime Minister said that while he was in London last year he had invited Lord Bumham, President of the Empire Press Conference, to visit New Zealand on the occasion of the next conferference, which was to be held in Sydney next year. That gentleman had accepted, and he believed that many of the other Empire delegates would visit New Zealand also, and be valuable advertising mediums for the Dominion. WORK OF THE DEPARTMENT. Mr Massey paid a high tribute to the Government Publicity Department which, though not long in existence, had done very fine work in bringing New Zealand under the favourable notice of overseas countries. They had struck out on new lines, which were of great value. An incident of their advertising work was the supply to the High Commissioner of 1000 copies of each of 21 different pamphlets and publications. There were also regular supplies of pictures and lantern slides to the High Commissioner, as well as Canadian official and other sources, such as the Canadian Pacific and Canadian National railway stations, trains and hotels, and the Government Agent in Vancouver, for general distribution. The same applied at San Francisco, Singapore, Sydney and Melbourne, and the Union Steam Ship Company was given an ample supply which were used on its steamers in the Pacific.