EMPTY SHELVES

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVIII, Issue 23347, 2 November 1945, Page 2

EMPTY SHELVES

Acute Shortage Of Clothing Strict English Rationing “There are still people who expect a sudden and miraculous return to the shops of all the old familiar goods. They will be sadly disappointed.” This description of conditions in England, from a recent issue of the London “Economist,” could be applied to NewZealand. Explaining why people will be disappointed, the “Economist” deals particularly with clothing. It emphasises that the clothing shortage in England is so acute that 'it may be three or four years before the British people will be able to do without clothing rationing. The world has larger stocks of raw cotton and wool than ever before, but the problem is to get that cotton and wool made into thread, and then into cloth and finally into clothing. At every stage there are serious labour shortages, but worst of all in the spinning and weaving trades. Few of the men and women released from the armed forces want to enter these trades. “It is an unfortunate fact that nearly a year must elapse between the placing of an order for spinning and the appearance in the shops of garments made from cloth resulting from the order," states the “Economist.” “When spinning output shows a marked improvement some hcj’es may be held out of a gradually increasing (clothing) ration, and perhaps in three or four years from now rationing could be completely removed.”

Effect on Exports This situation is bound to have its effect on countries like New Zealand which depend on Britain for a large part of their clothing materials. It is even suggested by the “Economist" that the clothing shortage in Britain would last longer still if it were decided to increase • present exports of cloth. In other words, if people overseas are to get larger quantities of cloth from Britain then the British people may have to do with less. It has to be remembered, too, that the shortage of labour for the spinning and weaving trades affects not only clothing but household linen, blankets, curtains and upholstered fabrics. At the end of August the British clothing ration was reduced to a level lower than at any time during the war. This step had to be taken just when the Japanese war was ending and when there was some hope that larger army releases would ultimately make more labour available for spinning and weaving cotton and w’ool. But the inevitable delays before men and women now in the forces get back into industry may make it several months before there is a larger output of thread or yarn. Even then, as Sir Stafford Cripps pointed out in a speech at Bradford, it will be another eight months before that thread or yarn appears as clothes in the shops.