STRAIN IMPOSED ON MR. AND MRS. W. J. JORDAN BY N.Z. VISITORS

Wanganui Chronicle, 7 November 1949, Page 4

STRAIN IMPOSED ON MR. AND MRS. W. J. JORDAN BY N.Z. VISITORS

AUCKLAND, Last Night (PA).— Great strain was being thrown on resources of New Zealand House by the many visitors to London from the Dominion and by the increased number of New Zealand Government oi- | fleers residing in London, said the Mayor of Auckland, Mr J. A. C. Allum, who returned to Auckland on Saturday from a visit to the United Kingdom. The High Commissioner (Mr. W. J. Jordan) and Mrs Jordan were wonderful ambassadors for the Dominion, but their health was suffering from the great amount of work they had had to do. “Recently a great deal has been said about New Zealand House and it is gratifying that as the High Commissioner himself is concerned it is universally agreed that New Zealand is most ably represented,” said Mr. Allum “Mr. Jordan has been, and still is, a great and diplomatic ambassador for our country. He has been well supported by his wife, but, unhappily, both of them are suffering in health as a result of their devotion to our interests. “Some New Zealanders who visit New Zealand House seem to think that it is a kind of club in which they are entitled to all sorts of services and amenities,” the Mayor continued.

“This should not be the position as most New Zealanders who visit London are members of one or other of the patriotic societies. They would be well advised to accept the hospitality so generously offered by the London headquarters of those organisations rather than impose a further strain on New’ Zealand House.” Whether it was necessary for so many Government officers to he resident in London was a matter of opinion, said Mr. Allum. However, as long as they were resident there, living accommodation should be made available to them on arrival and they should be paid adequate salaries. "At present, New Zealand Government officers arriving in London must find their own accommodation, which is costly and most difficult to obtain,” said Mr. Allum. “They are also faced with high cost of living. The cost ol living in London is now as high as it is in New Zealand and it is more costly for our officers, who must, in the interests of Ike Dominion, conform to the prevailing standard of living of their English colleagues. I believe it is well known that in general British officials are more highly paid than New Zealand officials.”