SIX YEARS’ WORK

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24895, 7 June 1946, Page 3

SIX YEARS’ WORK

OIL FUEL COMMITTEE’S 1 LAST MEETING

With the end of rationing by the licence system, the Christchurch District Petrol Conservation Committee, more usually called the Oil Fuel Committee, held its final meeting on Wednesday after about six years’ work. • In common with committees of other centres, the Christchurch committee has been caled upon to handle a vast amount of work. Many thousands of licences have been issued, and apart from current licences many thousands of special licences -to meet specific emergencies or demands had also to be handled. As reductions or other changes periodically arose, the committee had to face still further work, reviewing, reducing, or expanding allocations and giving all applications close attention so that decisions would comply with directions issued by the Dominion Oil Fuel Controller.

Since the war made necessary the establishment of the committee, some members have met each business day, others have given their services two or three times weekly, and others, coopted members, have met weekly or as required by the pressure of applications in which they have been interested. The committee’s main task was conservation, at the same time ensuring that industry dependent on petrol was able to keep functioning. The voluntary services of the members in the often exacting work was recognised by the Chief Postmaster (Mr D. R. Thomson), as the committee’s chairman, when he expressed appreciation of the services for the Dominion Oil Fuel Controller and the department. All sections of the community were represented on the committee, either by permanent members or through the service of co-opted members.

Apart from co-opted members, the personnel of the main committee included the Chief Postmaster, his deputy (Mr E. E. Wallace), as chairman of the Christchurch advisory committee, and Messrs W. R. Carey, J. S. Hawkes, H. S. Feast, L. K. Laugesen, I. L. M. Coop, J. S. Haywood, F. S. Gray, O. Hutchinson, C. E. Vigers, J. T. Adams, R. H. N. Owers, and F. G. Clark.

Advisory .committees have also been in operation in the Christchurch district at Akaroa, Amberley, Ashburton, Darfield, Kaikoura, Leeston, and Rangiora. Several. of the members of the Christchurch and of the district committees have served on them since the inception of rationing. The files of applications and other business handled are being retained meanwhile at the Post Office, pending instructions from Wellington.,