UNEMPLOYMENT FINANCE.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17469, 1 June 1922, Page 9

UNEMPLOYMENT FINANCE.

TO THE EDITOR OF "THE PRESS." Sir There are two questions which are of greS importance and .interest to the community, viz., housing and unemployment. With regard to the latter! I quoto from your leadjng tide of to-day's date: There ist any amount of work waiting to be doneenough to keep every man at present out of work, busy for months to come, when once the money is provided for paying for it." The housing question is practically in the same .position. Houses are wanted, and, given the funds necessary, could be built. Th® r ® are inaiiv insanitary buildings which should be" pulled down and replaced by I newly-erected houses. It- is n question. of finance. I am going to muke a sugI gestion which, if adopted, would pro-

vide the funds and enable these two questiona to.be dealt with, with benefit to the- community. Let the Government issue Treasury notes to the value of, «ay, about two millions, these notes to be of various values, say from £IOO to £l. and to be declared legal tender, the issue to be at the- rate of two pounds for each inhabitant, and to be issued to the various local bodies in that proportion, the notes only to come into circulation as payment for work done either in housing or unemployment work. Such works would be approved of by the Government before being putin hand. These notes would bear no interest, but tho local body should undertake to withdraw them from circulation at the end of, say, twenty years by payment of their full face value By adopting this proposal, an additional two millions would come into circulation, and would represent work actually done. Houses would be sold or let. and the proceeds either used to build other houses or to redeem the Treasury notes. , Before tho end of twenty years, plantations would be returning a large profit.—Yours, etc-, A. JOYCE. Ashburton, May 30th, 1022.