“GOVERNMENT HAS GIVEN TOO MANY IMPORT LICENCES”

Wanganui Chronicle, 7 September 1950, Page 5

“GOVERNMENT HAS GIVEN TOO MANY IMPORT LICENCES”

WELLINGTON, Last Night (PA). —New Zealand’s income this year would be £200,000,000, said the Prime Minister (Mr. Holland) at th e annual meeting this afternoon of the United Kingdom and New Zealand Representatives’ Association. Every penny would be spent by the end of the year. “We are struggling to live within our income,” continued Mr. Holland. “We have given more import licences than we should have and w? are just going to struggle through.” How could tho Government have given greato” freedom of control from import licensing when New Zealand was spending everv penny it could get? ho asked. All ihe Government could have done would have been 1o take it from someone to give to someone else. Mr. Holland paid high tribute to the farmin"- communitv and said it should never bn forgotten that Ihp farming community provided tho income on wh’ch the country lived. The United Kingdom Manufacturers’ Association, in its report. was asking for imnort control through exchange control, said Mi’. Holland. That was not practical politics. When the counti’” was sho’t of overseas Funds the Government must allocate them to see that there was a return to th'' Treasure through tho custom* and it must see that the same return was .gained for each million pounds '•nont. a< "hen everything was free from control. One of lh A reasons for the need 1o retain control was Ihe 1 or 2 nor rent, who overseas exchange rhove nar. said Mr. TTo’land. P”pssuro was then exerted on the Gr>-evnm n n’ to st on that and it w.'.< those “sraib’w<a° p s” who were -sponsible for the restrictions, he said.