21 October 2013

Labour is calling for an inquiry into the economics of forestry processing, with leader David Cunliffe saying importing timber for the Christchurch rebuild while New Zealand mills were closing was "lunacy".

On Saturday it emerged that Rotorua's Tachikawa Forest Products had been placed in receivership, threatening up to 120 jobs, with the company unable to secure log supply.

Finance Minister Bill English said yesterday that with the economy picking up, even if the jobs were lost, the workers should be able to find employment elsewhere.

"Our primary production industries are growing, they've got near record high prices for their products overseas, business confidence is as high as it's been for quite some time and the opportunity for those workers will be better than it has been in any time over the past six or seven years," Mr English said on Television New Zealand's Q + A programme.

Source: Story by Hamish Rutherford, Fairfax. To read the full story, click here