Marshall

"It was a blow, but Gibbs didn’t despair yet. They’d also written to Holyoake, who’d been overseas early in September. He’d discussed the project with Marshall and asked his deputy to be ‘kept in touch with developments’.[9](private://read/01jrsfvkjy84rkprtbz9amfvj8/#rw-num-note-477268-974936905-9) Eventually Marshall relented and the brothers secured a meeting with him, but their charm and enthusiasm weren’t sufficient. Writing a month later, Marshall offered only a flicker of hope that he and Customs Minister Norm Shelton might consider some licences for the Anziel project further down the line if the balance of payments situation improved, allowing for a general relaxation of import controls. But there was no assurance.[10](private://read/01jrsfvkjy84rkprtbz9amfvj8/#rw-num-note-477268-974936905-10)"

"Not taking the hint, the Gibbs kept pushing. Ian explained he was going to the UK to visit the Reliant plant and they really needed their prototype to make progress. Marshall finally yielded at the end of November, allowing them to spend £750 on their prototype, but stressing that this munificence did not imply that approval had been given for the broader project.[11](private://read/01jrsfvkjy84rkprtbz9amfvj8/#rw-num-note-477268-974936905-11) Such was the extent of the state’s powers in New Zealand that the young entrepreneur had had to crawl on hand and knee to get this far."