No. 147, OCTOBER, 196.
A. I. D. A. OFFICE BEARERS
The election of office bearers from A. I. D. A.' s Council
Members, elected at the Annual General Meeting
held on 26th May, 1964, was conducted at the August
Council Meeting. The following is the complete list
of Council Members and office bearers.
President: * Mr. F. M. Wiltshire.
Immediate Past President:
* Mr. B. G. Ross.
Senior Vice-Presidents:
* Dr. E. Barraclough ( Victoria).
* Mr. W. W. Pettingell,
Vice-Presidents:
* Mr. E. R. Beattie.
* Mr. G. G. Foletta, C. M. G.
Mr. S. G. Herron.
* Mr. C. G. McGrath, O. B. E.
* Mr. H. P. Weber.
Council Members:
* Mr. W. H. Anderson, C. B. E.
Mr. E. P. Breheny.
Mr. R. W. Burge.
Mr. T. R. Davey.
Mr. E. P. Draffin.
Mr. E. E. Dunshea.
Sir Alexander Fitzgerald, O. B. E.
Mr. G. Haile.
XMlr. L. J. Hartnett, C. B. E.
* Mr. A. C. Hatrick.
Mr. J. V. Inglis.
Mr. F. G. James.
Sir John Jensen, O. B. E.
Mr. H. Kinnear.
Mr. P. H. Morton, M. L. A.
Mr. P. S. Moss.
Mr. H. M. Sleigh.
Mr. R. N. Stokes, M. L. A.
Mr. Keith Storey.
Sir Fred Thorpe.
Hon. Sir Arthur Warner.
Chairman of Committees:
Mr. W. H. Anderson, C. B. E.
Director: C. P. Puzey.
Manager, New South Wales:
Mr. J. E. Logan.
* Executive members. Australian Industries
D[ D
Development Association
N -o
' b 1-Mr. F. M. Wiltshirc, President, A. I. D. A.
DINNER IN HONOUR OF
PRIME MINISTER
A. I. D. A. were hosts at a dinner which was held in
Sydney on 7th September, 1964, at which the guest
of honour was the Prime Minister of Australia, the
Rt. Hon. Sir Robert Menzies. Some 240 of Australia's
business leaders in secondary industry, banking and
commerce attended to hear the Prime Minister's
address. The major purpose of this dinner was to
further the exchange of opinions, and to promote
closer undersanding of mutual problems, between
private enterprise and government.
Sir Robert Menzies was welcomed and introduced
by the President of Mr. F. M. Wiltshire,
whose remarks are summarised as follows.
" It is my privilege to welcome our guest of honour,
the Prime Minister of Australia, the Rt. Hon. Sir
Robert Menzies. The Prime Minister has done great
honour to this Association in finding time in his significantly
busy life to address us tonight. We are
proud of the distinction he has conferred upon us,
and we thank him for it. I am glad to say that there
are representatives from every State in the Commonwealth
here tonight.
" in being with us, Sir Robert follows something
of0 family tradition, because, in consulting our
October, 1964.
records, we find that a Mr. James Menzies joined this
Associati ' on in 1937, and Senator J. W. Leckie in 1929.
The late James Menzies was the father of the Prime
Minister, and a great fighter for Australian industry.
The late Senator Leckie was the Prime Minister's
father-in-law, and acted in this Association's affairs
for a number of years.
" As to the Prime M'vinister himself, we have never
had any doubt about where he stands on industrial
development in Australia. From time to time we have
agreed to differ in detail but we have always known
where he stands in principle.
" What' can one say on an' occasion like this about
the Prime Minister. I have before me a condensed
record of the Prime Minister's achievements which
covers five pages. It would take an hour or longer to
read it to you, and elaborate upon it. Nevertheless I
cannot let this opportunity pass without making some
reference to this magnificent record a record vast
in its scope, a record of a great talent applied in a
field which has been described as the most worthy profession
a man can follow that of Legislator. It is
an inspiring record, a record of which Australia must
justly be proud, a record known round the world,
where Sir Robert is regarded as one of the great
figures of our time."
The Prime Minister opened his address in ininmitably
witty fashion, with an exchange of pleasant personalities,
but he did refer, in passing, to a subject of
some significance to ' the textile industry*. Major
extracts from his address are given below.
" Mr. Wiltshire, your reference to my father and
my father-in-law has touched me very much. My
father was not only possessed of strong views, but was
very vocal about them and, in those days,' it took a
certain amount of courage for a man to be a protectionist
in a free trade area. My father was a violent
protection ist,. and the first arguments I ever heard
were those of my father explaining what nonsense
free trade. was * and how important it was to have a
protective tariff. . Those were the days when great
arguments went onl about protection or free trade.
At the turn of the century, this was the great free
trade State, and Victoria was the great protectionist
State and that was one of the reasons why they
inserted ( to the great profit of the legal profession)
Section 92 in the Constitution. For a long time after
that, the party position in Australia tended to be on
the issue of free, trade or protection. I am happy to
say that those days are as dead as the Dodo. Now
there is nobody who is a free trader because
smugglers have almost disappeared and the only
argument now is not whether there ought to be protection,
but what the degree of protection ought to be.
I have lived long enough to find that all sorts of
p~ eop~ le are high protectionists who were once regarded
as low tariff men. In other words, we have got to the
* Sir Robert spoke of a conversation with Dame Pattie
Menzies, in which she referred to her Inability to obtain
Australian made fine woollen textiles In retail emporiums.
( This is not the fault of Australian manufacturers.) point where most people believe in a protective tariff
and in the development of Australian industry.
" But at the same time, we still have argumentsthe
longer we live the.* more sophisticated we become
politically, the more we find things to disagree about.
I thought, tonight, I would like to talk to you about
three or four of what I regard as the fallacies so popular
to economic thinking. Before 1 do that, I ought to
say at onice that my own views are not destructive
ones on this matter, they are entirely' constructive. I
beli eve in the growth Of this country. I believe in
the secondary industries of this country, because they
can do things in relation to immigration and in relation
to national development that perhaps nobody
else can.' I believe in those things, but I also believe
that in the long run the national balance of Australian
development will depend upon two or three
things. One is that there should be a constant expansion
of secondary industry. One is that there should
be a constant consideration for the provision of primary
industry, which still p) roduces the overwhelming
bulk of our export income and is therefore primarily
responsible for our international solvency. A third
thing is that I believe in growth it would be a
strange thing for a man who has had the great fortune
to be Prime Minister of this country so long not to
realise that it is the growth of this country which
determines the future of this country. That is growth
in all fields. But also I happen to believe that one of
the great enemies of growth is instability instability
in the monetary world an inflationary boom, followed
by burst, and acute counter-inflationary
action. A lot of people seem to think that this is -due
to the mischievous, wrong view of the politicians. It
is not it is primarily due to the fact that, in a young
country which is expanding enormously, we may have
these Lips and downs. Whenever -there -is an " up"
somebody is delighted, and whenever this is a " down"
somebody is a bit peeved. It is. the humble, necessary,
task of the politician to try to reduce the uips and
downs by producing a climate which will enable
uis to havre stability to an adequate extent and growth
to an adequate extent. This is the great task of
economic policy. Having all these things in my mind,
I thought to offer you a view or two on some of the
Current fallacies.
" Every year I read ( and quite recently I read it
again) that there is something wrong with the Commonwealth
Government paLying for its works programme
out of revenue.. Somebody will say, with all
the air of a new discovery: % Vh71y don't you take it out
of loan money?' This, I believe, is absur-d. I have
lived long enough to know that facts are more formidable
than theory. One must always have a theory.
One must always have a set of principles in his mind,
but one must never allow them to overwhelm the facts,
because facts have something indomitable about
them. Why does the Commonwealth pay, to our works
programme, a couple of htundred million pounds out
of revenue and ask the taxpayer to produce the
money? The answer is quite simple. The whole of
the loan raisings in Australia, ( though theoretically
October, 1964.
the Commonwealth is entitled to a fifth of them under
the financial agreement) go to the States for their
works programmes. It would be well worth remembering
that, when the financial agreement was made
back in the twenties, the whole theory was that the
Loan Council would have one simple task: how much
money can be borrowed on reasonable terms and conditions.
1 can remember attending a Loan Council
meeting ( not as a Principal but as an assistant) many
years ago, and at that time the whole loan works programme
for Australia was about œ E20m. Mvr. Lyons
was Prime Minister at that time, and I was his Deputy
in his own party and Attorney-General. Now, of
course, it is two or three hundred million pounds,
and everybody is accustomed to. these figures. But
one of the things that has never been properly understood
is that, whereas the Loan Council under the
financial agreement began by determining how much
could be borrowed on reasonable terms and conditions,
that question no longer arises. When we meet
there is a great argument with each State putting its
plan, and ultimately we end up by saying: the States
Works Programme is to be œ E335m. ( or whatever it
might tturn out to be). If the Commonwealth agrees
to this, then the Commonwealth does its best to
borrow that amount of money. But if it does not, it
finds the short fall. In my own time as Prime Minister,
we have, over a period of years, found hundreds
of millions out of revenue to make up the short fall,
because at a time when there was a powerful inflationary
movement and the loan market was
obviously very sick, we might borrow 180rn. one year
and find ourselves, involved in .; 200m. by a form of
underwriting of the States works programme. Thanks
to stability in costs and prices ( and we have had a
good deal of that in the last five years) the loan
market has been very healthy, and still remains firn;
but the whole of the proceeds of the loan market go
to the States works programme and the Commonwealth
does not get anything. I am not complainibg
about that. The only time I want to complain is
when somebody comes along and says that on the
proper basis of accotuntancy you ought to be spending
on your works programme only the proceeds of loans.
But if we did, then I dto not know what would happen
to the State works programme. This is not a matter
of theory this is just a matter of simple, practical
hard facts. The truth is that today and, as far as I
know, for years to come, the Commonwealth, if it
wants the States to have the necessary financial pr'ovision
to do their works programmes, accepts the
responsibility ( always an unpopular one) of carrying
its own works programme on the Budget. Nothing
would suit me better than to be able to transfer the
1200m. of Commonwealth wvorks onto some
mysterious Loan account, so that I could reduce taxes
with not very mtuch trouble, but the facts are to the
contrary. That is one thing I described as a fallacy
the fallacy of carrying the Commonwealth works
on reventue when they ought to be carried on loans.
" There is a second fallacy, and that is that in 1963-
4, the financial year just ended, all that happened in Australia was that some or all of the ground lost in
196 1-62 was recovered. This is not true. The fact is
that between 1960, the boom year, and the year just
closed the change in Australia has been phenomenal.
I do not like to hear people crying down their own
country or saying that we have not developed, or saying
that we have not improved our productivity. Between
what was a boom year in 1960 and the last
financial year, the improvement in Australian condisions
has been, I think, quite phenomenal. To me
this is a proof that you can have stability, as we have
had over that period in the consumer price index,
and still have the most astonishing growth. Between
these periods it is idle to say that there has been no
improvement in productivity. Public employment
employment by government between 1959-60 and
1963-64 rose by 85 thousands. In case somebody says:
' There you are this is the preference given ' to the
public sector!', I hasten to add that private employment
rose by 249,000. 1 think that it is not bad to
have an increase in that period of time of about 335
thousand people in employment in Australia. Wage
and salary earnings rose by 27% in that time, and
the total increase in the consumer price index over
the whole of this period was only about Wage
and salary earnings rose by 27%, average male earnings
rose by 16%, farm income ( for reasons partly
attributable to the yield of farmers and scientific
improvement, and partly due to seasons and partly
clue to the recovery of overseas markets) rose by 46%.
Gross national product rose by 27%, all this was between
1959-60 and 1963-4. These I think are very
stimulating figures. In terms of quantity, steel produiction
rose by 25% electricity by cement by
28% 7, and so on. As for motor vehicles I very well
remember that after the " little budget" something
happened to motor car production. About 18 months
ago we had one of our conferences with the Chamber
of Automotive Industries, and the estimates that were
given of the optimum that was being looked for was
358,000 vehicles each year. ' Well in 1960, in this
boom period, there were 295,000 vehicles and this
year 400,000. My young colleague, Leslie Bury, Minister
for Housing, would be able to recall that in 1959-
60 ( the then record year) the number of houses and
flats commenced was 91,000 and in 1963-4 they were
107,000. Is this the year of gloom does this make
peop~ le feel that there is some pess imism does this
make anybody feel that all that has happened is that
we have somewhat recovered the ground that was lost
in 1961-62? With great respect, that is just absurd.
This country is going forward in the most remarkable
fashion. Savings bank deposits in Australia since 1960
have increased by œ 715m., on average for each man,
woman and child from œ 148 to œ 200. Another point
I want to make is this: nothing will matter so much
in the next fiv'e years as a feeling of pride and confidence
and enthusiasm among our own people. If
p~ eople are going around crying poor mouth, that is
the surest way I have ever heard to bring about some
recession. " There is another fallacy, which is: that expenditure
October, 1964.
always goes up in the public sector, but what about
the private sector. I am no great lover of economists
I read them but I don't love them. They have a
certain jargon no people have done more harm to
the purity of English than the economists. One of
these things is that they divide all expenditure on
the capital side into the public sector and the private
sector. Does this mean that the public sector is going
to do what the stupid politicians want to do to please
their constituents, and that the private sector is the
health giving investment for private business? Nobody
is a greater believer than I am in the fact that
private enterprise, and the spirit of adventure, and
the spirit of youth, are the driving forces in this country
( or in any other). But as I look over the field of
expenditure in the public sector I venture to say that,
for the most part, there would have been no private
development at all but for the expenditure in the
public sector.
" Let me give you an example or two. Take the
Snowy Mountains Scheme. There expenditure would
be getting near 12O0m. ( and it is * all out of revenue
except for a little loan from the World Bank) and by
the time it is finished, on the present plans, it will be
about 14O0m. What is it for? Quite true, it will produce
some electric power and light for the capita]
territory; quite true it will produce some for governmental
services* in N. S. W. and Victoria, but overwhelmingly
on the power side it will provide power
for industry in N. S. W. and Victoria and not provide
it at extortionate rates, because the whole object
is to produce power at cost, not to make a profit. The
Commonwealth will never make a shilling profit out
of the Snowy, and as'time goes on the cost of power
will be, of course, a diminishing factor. This means
that there will be hundreds and hundreds of industries
in Australia which will be assured of electric
power and light who might not have been able to get
it but. for the operation of the Snowy. In short, this
is primarily a powerful contribution to private. enterprise.
There is* the other aspect of it. The storage of
water in the Snowy Scheme is going to produce irrigation
right down the Valley of the Murrumbidgee
and the Murray which will put thousands of people
on to irrigated farms and those are p~ rivate people,
who want to develop their own production. Therefore
I think I might be. as right as a politician is
expected to be if I say that 90%, of the expenditure
on the Snowy, and the dams, and the later reticuilation,
will be in aid of private enterprise in Australia.
if that is so what is the use of saying less in the public
sector and more in the private sector. Let us. on the
contrary, try to think of it as something that comes
in aid of both, and in partictular in aid of private
industry. I believe that it is in the encouragement of
private enterprise, in putting at the elbow of the private
enterprise the kind of resources that it needs,
that the whole future of this country depends.
" I have mentioned the Snowy, I could equally mention,
for example, the'standardisation of the railway
between Kalgoorlie and Perth and Kwinana. This goes into the item expenditure in the public sector,
and yet what is it? There they have great deposits of
iron ore, and a great steel company has said: if we
can have that iron ore hauled along this long route
in up-to-date rolling stock on an up-to-date railway
line we can establish an iron and steel industry at
Kwinana in Western Australia. This is a magnificent
conception, and this is a conception of private enterprise.
So the -Commonwealth has undertaken great
financial responsibilty; it is all put down to the public
sector in this rather artificial division, but only to a
tiny p) ossible fraction does it have some effect on the
Commonwealth's own interest in a railway line. Primarily
it will open uip a new world for private enterprise
in Western Australia. The moment they have
an iron and steel industry, all the ancilliary industries
will begin to expand. It is -quite likely that in
Kwinana and Perth and Fremantle you will have the
kind of development that you see here in Newcastle
and Wollongong. This is, I think, tremendous and
imaginative. " We will be spending an enormous amount of
money this year on beef roads in the North, so that
there may be -an encouragement to people who are
growing cattle there, and to enable them to -bring
them to market in good condition and at the right
time. " I could go on for a long while, with all sorts of
examples of that kind. I must confess that if I were
in charge of somne great business enterprise I would
want nothing more than to-know if I expanded my
business I would see the housing, the roads, the transport,
the light and power, andi so on, provided.
All this adds up to this: just as, when I was a boy,
there was a power of energy and enthusiasm wasted
on whether You were a free trader, or a protectionist,
so there may be too much wastage today on some
alleged conflict between business and government.' I
CIO hope that we will not fall into that error too much.
Business and government are in the same cause. We
will occasionally disagree, but aboOe all things w . e
mu1Lst'at all times seek to understand each other' and
to co-operate with each other. I know of no s ingle
economic factor in the country which p) roduces an
irresolvable difference between the man who is doing
the work in the market place, and in the facto * ry, and
the man looking after the broad principles of governmnent
in Canberra ( or wherever it may be). This is a
co-operative Government. XWe have done a little
perhaps not enough in the way of having consultations
with p~ eople in industry. I venture, as years
go on, we will have more and more of this. As years
go on, wve will hav'e more and more p~ eople in politics
struggling to understand the problems of the businessman
and, what is equally important, we will have
more and more businessmen struggling to understand
the problems of politics. But it is not enough to say
what is the use of going to the politicians because the . y
do not understand our problems. The politicians are
strangely human people. Frequently you do not know
the problems that come to the government, with not
only its responsibility to individuals, but responsibility
October, -1964.
for the great movements of international scale, which
can never be solved on a sectional basis, responsibility
for international -financial movements, which
always involve domestic budgeting policy in this
country itself.
" We do not know enough about each other. I have
never assumed to tell any man of business how he
ought to run his business because I have had a sneaking
idea that, nine times out of ten, he knows more
about it than I do. Let us get over this rather childish
differentiation. Let us understand that we are all adult
people and we are all patriots, and want to do the
best thing for our country, which quite permits doing
the best thing for our company or for our own selves.
Let us be patriots, and the right way to be a patriot
is to get to understand what the other man is doing,
and to see how far, in co-operation, we can achieve
the greatest degree of growth with the greatest ever
achievable degree of stabilty in our monetary system
that form of stability which means so much."
The vote of thanks to the Prime Minister was proposed
by Mr. W. W. Pettingell, Vice-President of
who spoke as follows.
" Tonight I feel that we have been reminded that
this relationship, which we have at some time entered
into, is as yet hand-in-hand and possibly ! has not been
consummated by that more respectable relationship
of marriage. But you and I, as practicing marriages
in various aspects of industry, do not achieve the
eminence of many economists who have a more vocal
approach to the problem. I am sure you will agree
with me that the Prime Minister has pointed to that
hand-in-hand relationship, which implies at least
some medium of understanding, and an effort to
uinderstand the problems of the other, at least to
bring about a more happy state in the future. I
think you and I have indicated the fact that this
country has an enornous potential.
" Tonight, we have here a group of the elder statesmen
of industry in New South Wailes, and, tlhink,
in Australia, and some of the younger men who in
the course of time will take over the task and leave
their imprint on the future history of this country.
They look to the future as one of wonderful challenge.
We have under our feet a country rich in resources,
as yet largely unscratched; one which lends
itself to an extensive application of knowledge, of
capital, and of endeavour, with the richness of reward
which will follow the application of, at least, those
three resources. Undoubtedly we who practise management
of our business concerns should, in the interests
of this wounderful country of ours and the people
who will follow on, apply ourselves more to the
understanding of the problems which lie ahead of us.
X\: e know that we are a country wide open to exploitation,
in the full sense, by the resources of knowledge
and capital that exist in different parts of the world.
We know that there are tremendous problems of
policy and principle and practice which derive from
this overall task. But this tremendous challenge, I
feel, in the course of time, we can hand on to those
that follow us with a great deal of confidence and pride in what they might achieve. Tonight I think
you have given us a very great stimulus in thinking,
and one which we will take with us and pass on to
those who share the responsibilities with us."
The vote'of thanks was seconded by Mr. R. G. C.
Parry-Okeden, whose remarks are summarised as
follow. " Apart from thanking you for talking to us, and all
of us enjoy listening to you, I want to say just one
thing. You are, to my knowledge, the first Prime
Minister who has recognised that industry exists to
the extent of making a Ministry of Industry. We are
grateful to you for that. We have suggested for some
time, both this Association and other special groups,
that there should be such an establishment created in
Canberra. We only pray to you that you appoint to
it the very best of your permanent staff that you can
find. You do not need me to tell you that you have
a wealth of talent in your public service at Canberra
to draw from. Thank you very much indeed, Sir, for
yet another of your wonderful speeches."
TOURISM INVESTMENT
A. I. D. A.' s Director recently returned from a holiday
tour of Central Australia, Arnhem Land, and the
Kimberley and Pilbara Districts of Western Australia.
Some aspects of the vast economic development potential
of the area will be discussed in later issues of
" Director Reports."
Apart from those aspects, however, these areas contain
some of the most fascinating, colourful, impressive
and distinctive scenic attractions to be found anywhere
in the world.
Alice Springs and its surrounding districts are probably
the best known, ( both in Australia and overseas)
and understandably so Ayers Rock is not only
unique geologically but its particular connection with
aboriginal legends and beliefs are a source of absorbing
interest. The beautiful Stanley Chasm ( 45 miles
from Alice Springs) is no less rewarding to the tourist
although less widely known.
There is the remarkable Gorge area around Wittenoom
( where blue asbestos is mined) Dale Gorge,
Yampire Gorge, Wittenoom Gorge, Joffre Falls, etc.,
to name a few -where climate and scenery combine
to provide ideal conditions for tourism.
The Kimberley/ Pilbara districts of Western Australia
contain some of the oldest known land areas in
the world, where centuries of erosion by wind and
water have reshaped the surface contours and left
only the bare bones of a stony country, compensated
by the beautiful colourings of deep mauves and
purples, sun-bright yellows, heliotrope and vivid reds
and ochres.
All these and many other areas provide attractions
which could form the basis of a valuable tourist trade,
October, 1964.
both Australian and overseas. At present, however,
this is only an unexploited potential. Facilities in
most areas are primitive if any exist at all. Accommodation
at Alice Springs and Darwin is available in
reasonable quality and quantity, and Wittenoom has
a modern comfortable hotel. Apart from these, however,
the standards of service and accommodation are
poor, and certainly not adequate to attract visitors
even if they were prepared for some lack of amenities.
it is important to these areas that adequate tourist.
facilities be provided. Unless people can be induced
to visit and see for themselves the great potential
which exists, then development will be retarded and
opportunities lost.
New hotels, motels and other tourist facilties must
be provided before tourism can be actively promoted.
One of the major problems, which emerged from the
Director's discussions with the W. A. Tourist Department
and the Licensing Court, is an acute shortage
of long-term finance. It is suggested that a special
fund, along the lines of the Development Fund,
should be established to make long-term loans ( say
to 20 years) to people willing to develop tourist
facilities in these remote areas. Unless Australia makes
a positive effort to develop these resources, overseas
interests will step in.
The National Travel Association has estimated that
overseas tourists will spend nearly œ 30m. in Australia
during the current financial year. The exploitation
of the unique attractions of the north and north-west
of Australia could attract more overseas travellers, as
well as tourists and business men from within Australia,
and could help quicken the pace of development
in these areas. OPPORTUNITIES
BELL BAY/ GEORGETOWN, TASMANIA
This is the first of a series of brief articles A. I. D. A.
intends to publish to draw attention to the need for
a better balance between light and heavy industry,
and male and female employing industry, in specific
areas around Australia. Suich areas offer an opportunity
to lighter industries, particularly those employing
a predominantly female workforce, to establish
themselves where all necessary facilities power,
water, transp~ ort, etc. are readily available and, as
well, a stable, btmt at present idle, supply of labour.
Bell Bay and its " dormitory" town Georgetown are
Situated approximately 40 miles north of Launceston
on the estuary of the Tamar River.
The total resident population of the Bell Bay/
Georgetown area is approximately 4,000 persons. The number of males and females in
groups are the working-age
Population by Age Group and Sex
Mvales Females
No. No.
15-19 years 160 150
20.29 years 270 270
30-39 years 00 320
40-49 years 290 230
50.65 years 295 128
Total 15-65 years 1,415 1,098
This means there is a total potential workforce of
2,513 persons.
Industries already operating in the area employ a
total of 1,155 persons, mostly males. The major enterprise
is the aluminium smelting p~ lant of Comalco
Industries Pty. Ltd. at Bell Bay. Approximate
employment in each of the existing establishments,
and their activities, are
Firm Activity Employment
Comalco . Aluminum 960
Temco, ( a subsidary
of Ferro-manganese
Phoenix Foundry Steel fabricators
Hydro Electric
Commission Electricity Supply
Georgetown Council Local authority activities
H. T. Bernhardt Painting Contractor Total 1,155
Other local activities retail shops and other services
would employ a further small number of the
available workforce, but there still remains a large
potential, particularly to employ female labour.
Bell Bay has good deep-water harbour facilities,
and is one of the terminals for the " Bass Trader," the
" roll-on, roll-off" vessel operated by the Australian
National Line, which carries cargo and loaded cornmercial
vehicles between Melbourne and Tasmania,
going direct to and from Bell Bay one clay each
week. Other freight ships also use this harbour, of
course. There is a fine bitumen highway between
Bell Bay/ Georgetown and Launceston ( and from
there to the rest of Tasmania~ s cities).
There is plenty of good, fiat industrial land available
in the area, in a pleasant natural rural setting.
Tasmania is the only State in Australia where power
comes from hyclro-electric generation exclusively. It
offers the cheapest cost for industrial uses of electricity
in any State, which, in itself, provides a major
attraction to many industries. The most recent of
many new hydro-electric stations completed in recent
October, 1964.
years is the Poatina Scheme which is located not far
from Launceston.
In the Bell Bay area two of Australia's largest companies
Conzinc Rio-Tinto ( through Comalco) and
B. H. P. ( through Temco) and particularly the
former provide employment opportunities, in a
variety of occupations, for a large proportion of the
local male population. Their workers have the opportunity
to make a permanent career with a major Australia
company, which is conducive to a stable, good
standard type of family population.
However, the lack of lighter industries capable of
employing the female population of the area is a sad
waste of one of Australia's most valuable resources
people. The Bell Bay/ Georgetown area, therefore, offers
labour, land, a good deep water harbour, cheap electricity,
reasonable proximity to one of the major
mainland markets ( Melbourne), good transport facilities
and, for a suitable user industry, primary aluminum
( ingot, billet and rolling block) in the immediate
vicinity as a raw material.
RESEARCH
At the invitation of the Minister for Supply, the
Hon. Allen Fairhall, a party of A. I. D. A.' s Council
members visited the Woomera Rocket Range
and Tracking Station and the Weapons Research
Estabishment at Salisbury, South Australia, in September.
The Woomer-a Range is being used as an international
testing station by European Launcher
Development Association in which
seven countries, including England, France and Germany
are combining their research and development
work in the field of guided missiles. The use of
Woomera, manned entirely by Australian technicians,
also brings Australia into this combined operation.
There is no cost to Australia involved in this aspect
of Woomera's activities and in addition Australia will
share in the benefits of any experiments. Currently
a " Blue Streak" Rocket is being assembled for firing.
The American " Black Knight" has also been tested at
Woomera. Of course, Australia's own equipment,
which is of the highest technical quality, is also tested
here. The tracking station at Woomera is one of three
which have been set up in Australia in co-operation
with the government of the United States of America.
Of the other two tricking stations one is located near
Canberra and one in the North West of Western Australia.
All are manned by Australians, but the cost
of building and. maintaining them is borne by the
U. S. A.
The Weapons-Research Establishment at Salisbury
is the working organisation behind Woomera, where
the actual research and experimental and development
work is carried out. Discussions were held in
both places with the administrative and technical leaders, including aspects in which industry could
participate, particularly in the field of applied
research. Both industry and defence in Australia
could benefit from the application in industry of the
productive techniques and knowledge developed at
Salisbury and Woomera.
Australian defence establishments under the control
of the Department of Supply have been responsible
for the export of equipment and know-how to a value
of œ 14m. over the past six years. The Minister for
Supply recently announced the following highlights
of his Department's recent export activities:
The sale of the Jindivik pilotless target aircraft
to Britain, Sweden and U. S. A.
The sale of the Malkara ground-to-ground
guided weapon to Britain.
A wide range of engineering products, technical
processes and developments.
The expenditure being undertaken by the Government
for research into defence problems in certainly
paying dividends. Similar profits could be expected
from the promotion of research in industry.
A. I. D. A. SCIENCE TEACHERS' AWARD
The A. I. D. A. Award for 1964 in Queensland was
recently presented to the Rev. Bro. R. M. Slattery,
B. Sc., Senior Science and
Mathematics Master, St. Joseph's College, Brisbane.
Extracts from Bro. Slattery's citation are given below.
" As in previous years the Referees found the task
of comparing the contributions to science teaching by
the nominees a very difficult one indeed. It was pleasing
to find that the number of nominations had grown
considerably this year and that the standard of the
nominees was uniformly high.
" Although the task of selection was a difficult one,
the Referees were completely confident with their
final decision. It was clear that Reverend Brother
Slattery possessed the qualifications sought after to a
pre-eminent degree.
" Brother Slattery received primary education from
the Sisters of St. Joseph at St. Therese's School,
Lakemba, a suburb of Sydney, and his secondary education
from the Christian Brothers at St. Patrick's
College, Strathfield. On completion of his schooling
he worked as a chemist for Lever Brothers in their
research laboratory and while there studied for a
chemical Engineering Diploma at the Sydney Technical
College.
" Joining the Religious Order of the Christian
Brotheri, Brother Slattery was enabled to complete. a
Science Degree at the University of Sydney. Majoring
in Inorganic Chemistry, he obtained, in 1954, two
High Distinctions in final year chemistry and First
Place in the University. Brother Slattery was awarded
the Walter Burfitt Memorial Bursary, but decided
not to continue studies for a higher degree, although
October, 1964.
the path was left: open to him to do-so by his
superiors in the Order.
" Shortly after completing his degree, Brother Slatter)
was admitted as an Associate -of the. Royal Australia ii
Chemical Institute and he also became a member oi
the New South Wales Science Treachers' Association.
In 1955, he was posted to St. Joseph's College, Rockhampton,
where he taught Chemistry, Physics and
Mathematics at all levels up to and including Senior,
During the two years at Rockhampton he joined tlit
Queensland Science Teachers' Association and th(
Catholic Colleges Science Teachers' Association.
" Early in 1957, Brother Slattery was transferred tc
St. Edmund's College, Canberra, and ther
filled the triple post of Senior Science Master, Senioi
Mathematics Master, and Sports Master. Brothei
Slattery helped to establish a branch of the New Souti
Wales Science Teachers' Association in the Australiar
Capital Territory. This soon became the A. C. T. S. T. A
and Brother Slattery was its first Vice-President. Ii
1959 he represented the Association -at thi
A. N. Z. A. A. S. conference in Perth and presented
paper in a Symposium on . the teaching of Physics
With the financial support of C lectures wern
also given at Melbourne, Adelaide, Kalgoorlie an(
Albury. " In 1960, Brother Slattery was posted to St. Joseph'
College, Gregory Terrace. Rejoining the Scienc,
Teachers' Association of Queensland he became
member of the Executive in 1961 and 1962, whils
he has also been. President of the Catholic College
Science Teachers' Association since 1962. A membe
of the Chemistry Sub-committee of the Board of Pos
Primary Studies for the last two years he helped asses
junior Physics papers in 1961. and 1962, Senio
Chemistry and Senior Mathematics II papers in 1962
and is this year one of the three people associate
with the setting of junior Chemistry papers.
" Ever since arriving in Queensland, Brother Slatter
has been very active indeed in all of those time-con
suming but important tasks that require interest ani
energy of a high order, on behalf of science teachinE
As President of the Catholic Colleges' Scienc
Teachers' Association, the recipient of this year'
Award assumed his greatest responsibility in organi!
AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIES
DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
406 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, VICTORIA.
I Telephone 67 7021.
17 O'Connell Street, Sydney, NEW SOUTH WALES.
Telephone 25 5358.
Manager J. E. Logan.
Cables and Telegrams:
I AIDIND, Melbourne or Sydney. ing the in-service training of Science teachers in the
Catholic schools of this State..
" It was the nature and scope of this in-service training
work that perhaps impressed the Referees most
of all, for it was clear that Brother Slattery not only
bore the brunt of much of the organisation it required
but that he was also responsible for a good deal of
the initiative in establishing the Seminars in the first
place. He has surely set an excellent example of
devotion. to the cause of Science teaching in one of
the most valuable of all ways; by helping to
improve standards of teaching throughout a great
many schools in this State.
" Reports of Brother Slattery's classroom teaching
that had come to the attention of members of the
Committee indicate that he is first-rate in every way.
r He played an important role in the design of th~ e new
1 Senior laboratories recently opened at St. Joseph's
I College and. they reflect his obvious enthusiasms for
individual practical work, his knowledge of good
laboratory facilities, and his skill as a constructor of
apparatus. " Modest as he is, anyone who knows Brother Slattery
must soon be aware that his thoughts are never
S far away from science teaching and its cause, not only
I on behalf of his own pupils, nor even those of the
Catholic schools, but for all learning science in schools
s throughout the State and the Country. Basic to this
e is an obvious dedication to the welfare of school
S pu~ pl whose interest in science he works hard to
t achieve with efforts well beyond the call of duty.".
s r LABOUR SHORTAGE
s The Consulate of Switzerland in Melbourne records
r in its " Economic News" a method of overcoming the
" labour shortage in Switzerland. " Three large firms
I in Basel appear to have found a solution worthy of
notice: they have formed a pool which ensures their
y customers prompt and caref ul service for relatively
small orders. At present this pool makes available to
I its clientele a painter, two electricians, a carpenter,
S two sanitary installation fitters and an experienced
e all-round worker. Fast service is ensured thanks to
' s five telephone lines and five cars carrying fully
equipped workshops on wheels. In operation since
last spring, this is a service which might profitably be
imitated in other towns in Switzerland, especially as,
it may be added, no patent has yet been taken out
on it-476 ' 2W Director.
ARBUCKLWEA DDELL PTY. LTD.