THE REASON WHY

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 10, 12 August 1946, Page 5

THE REASON WHY

MOTOR VEHICLE SHORTAGE IMPORTERS ASSOCIATION STATEMENT At a meeting of (he New Zealand Motor Vehicle Importers’ Association held on Monday, July 29, 1946,s the following resolution was passed:— That this meeting of New Zealand Motor Vehicle Importers’ Association places on record its keen disappointment at the extent of the restrictions placed upon the importation of commercial and passenger vehicles in 1947, an its grave concern at the effect this will have on the motor transport system of this country. Already the effect of six war years- of non-supply of new vehicles is shown in the increasing difficulty of the motor trade in keeping private transport, much of it essential, in roadworthy condition; also in the inordinately high prices now being asked for used vehicles, such prices being the direct outcome of the extreme shortage of new vehicles. It is appreciated that there may have been some justification for the limitation placed upon importations of vehicles in 1946, but there seems to be no justification whatsoever for a continuance of restriction on the same scale in 1947.

It is the unanimous opinion of this meeting that the serious character of the Government’s decision to withhold new vehicles from New Zealanders cannot be emphasised too strongly. It is probable that private-ly-owned motor cars and motor trucks, constituting the private motor transport system of New Zealand, carry more people and goods from where they are to where they are wanted than all the public transport systems put together. The public transport system, as everyone knows, is already over-strained and even a partial breakdown in the private transport system, on which so much of the people’s personal movements and movement of goods depends, would create congestion at ports and points of manufacture and corresponding shortage of . goods at points of consumption.

• That there is already a serious lack of vehicles is shown by the inability of grocers, butchers, bakers and other tradesmen to resume the pre-war delivery service of goods. Housewives have been obliged to make do as best they can and are forced to make many otherwise needless journeys to and from their particular shopping centres in all weathers to carry supplies for the family needs. The Government’s decision to prevent vehicle importers from bringing into New Zealand in 1947 sufficient vehicles to provide for this service can only mean that New Zealand women are still to be the fetchers and carriers of the nation.

In fairness to the . motor trade which, during the war, despite difficulties of supply and shortage of manpower, kept private essential transport in operation, it should be made known to all concerned that new commercial and passenger vehicles can be obtained from overseas in quantity and that the only reason orders have not been placed in sufficient numbers to make good the present great shortages in New Zealand is that the New Zealand Government will not issue the necesary import licenses. It seems doubtful that this can be justified on financial grounds for, so far as Unted Kingdom supplies • are concerned, New Zealand has substantial credit balances in London, and United Kingdom exporters are only too anxious to add to their export trade. Nor, would it seem, are dollars so short that greatly increased orders could not be placed in the dollar area, since some other Empire countries within the stei'ling bloc have been able to order vehicles from dollar sources on a basis that would indicate little, if any, limitation of imports by the Government concerned. Information from motor vehicle suppliers overseas shows that orders from New Zealand are on a scale very substantially less generous than those from any other country in the Empire. Why the New Zealand Government should deliberately prevent the purchase and importation of these much-needed vehicles is difficult to understand. Without vehicles coming into the country to meet natural demand New Zealanders must be satisfied with less service and a lower standard of living than they enjoyed in the past.

So that there shall be no misunderstanding of the effect of import restrictions on the importation. of vehicles, it should be explained that

so far as Canadian ‘ and United \ States vehicles are concerned the import licenses granted for 1947 are sufficient for the importation of only one passenger vehicle in that year, for every six passenger vehicles im- „ ported ip 1938, and only one motor truck in that year for every four trucks imported in 1938. In the case of United Kingdom, the. corresponding figures are: Passenger vehicles—three in 1947 for every five in 1938; and motor trucks—four in 1947 for every five in 1938. It should be appreciated that this meagre "quantity of vehicles to be imported in 1947 comes after six years of almost complete dearth and the .numbers allowed are. totally inadequate to take care of urgently needed replacements of worn-out vehicles, much less provide for returned service- _ men’s heeds and expanding population. It needs no wide experience or special understanding to realise that each day that passes is accentuating the problem and that immediate Government action to allow greater importations is necessary if a worse condition is not to develop.

\ It is the unanimous decision of this meeting that this Resolution be circulated to all members of both Houses of Parliament, to all Public Bodies and to all other bodies who are interested in motor transport, so that they may have a full appreciation of the reason why’ many desiring to purchase their own means, of transportation, whether for business or pleasure, will be unable to have their wants satisfied either this year or next year.