INDEPENDENT NEWS

Tindall Donation Another Publicity Stunt - Bell

Published: Sun 1 Mar 2009 01:41 PM
Media Release    Saturday 28th February 2.56pm
MADENZ
When Judith Bell learned that Stephen Tindall had been invited to the Jobs Summit she correctly predicted that his dutiful brother-in-law Tim Murphy (editor of the NZ Herald) would give him the ensuing headline.
Tindall Donation Another Publicity Stunt - Bell
Sure enough, we learn today that the Tindall Foundation is pledging $1 million towards training programmes.
" I wonder what the training will entail and to be frank I am hard pressed to see how any sort of training can off-set New Zealand manufacturers who are forced to compete with Tindalls imported Chinese products made from subsidised materials, subsidised energy, in some cases prison labour which is free, and then sold in a currency that is held artificially low",  said Judith Bell from Wellington today.
"It is hard to see that even if Levin apparel manufacturer Swazi machinists all held PHDs, it could make one iota of difference under the level of unfair trade that is supported by Tindall and our governments reluctance to apply sensible tariffs even though the WTO rules allow this for a country whose deficit is the size of ours."
"This job summit appears to have offered the same sort of results as the costly Knowledge Wave - another of Stephen Tindalls publicity stunts - which we all know crashed on the rocks."
We would all be much better off if The Warehouse pledged to purchase $1million of New Zealand made products - but that would be too obvious  - and of course it wouldn't  generate much of a headline." laughed Ms Bell.
Ends

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