AUSTRALIA’S FIRST MOTOR-CAR

Grey River Argus, 16 April 1948, Page 3

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST MOTOR-CAR

MELBOURNE, April 15

The shortage of skilled labour has been responsible for belaying for 18 months the producton -of the first all-Australian car. The vehicle, which has been designed and ■ produced by' General Motors Holdens Ltd., was,to have been on the market about July. , Production plant has been installed and the materials for mass production ordered, but operations. cannot begin until the company obtains iaoour - ' Five test cars, embodying variations of the basic design, have been undergoing tests for some months and have covered 60,009 road miles. All the details ar p secret, but it is believed that the car will be a 20 h.p. sedan, selling at about £4OO. tically all the 1948 import licences for motor cycles have been used, and the residue available is negligible for future orders. It must immediately appear'that the quantity for 1948 of 650 motor cycles is totally , inadequate, remembering that 1948 licences were actually issued in early August last year, that a large quantity of machines arrived here before the end of December, and that, they were cleared on 1948 licences, to which the Minister of Customs was in ’agreement. As the position stands .to-day, unless some further assistance is given by means of additional licences, this trade throughout New Zealand is faced with a very barren period”.

Opposition Leader Joins

CHRISTCHURCH, April 15

Mr S. G. Holland, Opposition Leader, in a speech here, said: “It is high time that the argument. about whether New Zealand is locking out Britain’s exports, or whether Britain has asked New Zealand to limit her imports of British goods is settled. Britain has stated on the clearest terms that she must increase her exports substantially, and indeed is allocating her vital raw materials to ‘those manufacturers who undertake to ship the finished products . overseas. Next we hear of importer after importer being refused licences to import British goods which are definitely available for export from Britain to New Zealand, and now we are told by Britain that import restrictions in overseas markets are holding Britain back from achieving her import target. Then Mr Nash comes along and tells us all is well. Whom are we to believe? He consistently harps on the value of imports from Britain in 1948 being related to the value of imports from Britain in 1938, and he claims that on that basis licences are being issued for a reasonable supply of the goods concerned. What Mr Nash knows perfectly well, but what he studiously avoids saying, is that prices have advanced to such an extent that in many cases less than half the quantity of goods can be imported in 1948 with the same amount of money used in 1938. What Mr Nash also carefully avoids telling the people is that many of the 1938 sources of supply have now been cut off, which makes the position that much worse. Cases could be quoted where imports have been reduced by 75 per cent., and more, because licences are issued in relation to 1938, since when prices have increased by more than double in many cases, and also because certain 1938 sources of supply are no' longer available. “The import licensing system has become chaotic. Many people are suspicious that the withholding of licences is because Mr Nash is determined to pay off debts to Britain. If this is correct, it cuts right across his earlier statement that we should never endeavour to pay off debts while our people go short of the things they need”.