Anderton, forestry reps to discuss sector's development plans

Forestry industry representatives have been invited to Wellington to
meet with Economic Development Minister Jim Anderton to discuss the
industry's development strategy.

Jim Anderton said he wanted to touch base with a broad range of
representatives from the sector to ensure they remained committed to
accelerating the industry's development towards high value-added
products and markets as outlined in the Wood Processing Strategy
after comments earlier today by the Timber Industry Federation's
executive director, Wayne Coffey.

The Timber Industry Federation appears to think that the government
is hostile to business and views industry as 'some sort of necessary
evil,' according to a Radio New Zealand report.

"In reality, there hasn't been a government in our recent
history that has been so prepared to be engaged with the wood
industry as this coalition government. When I chaired the Wood
Processing Taskforce it was the first time that such a comprehensive
and representative industry grouping had been brought together to
address industry-wide concerns.

"We studied the issues that the industry itself identified as
blockages to development. And we carefully considered areas where the
government could actively participate in collective solutions to
assist the sector to meet its potential of one day being this
country's largest export earner.

"This is the government that has met the challenge of investing
$30 million per year in strategic roading identified as necessary to
the industry's development. This is the coalition government that has
invested $2 million in setting up a Centre of Excellence for Wood
Processing in Rotorua and is committed to investment in the training
and education of young adults for the wood industry which is so
valuable to its future," he said.

Jim Anderton said everyone in the industry agrees that New Zealand's
future prosperity can't be secured by competing on low costs and low
wages alone.

"Our challenge as a nation is to make the investments in skills,
infrastructure and equipment that will permit us to raise the
proportion of high quality goods and services that we manufacture and
export. There are complementary roles for industry sectors,
individual businesses and the government to achieve these objectives.
I believe we are on the right track and most industry leaders I speak
to regularly think so too," he said.