High Country Tenure

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30983, 12 February 1966, Page 10

High Country Tenure

rpHE Lands and Survey * Department had received several requests for conversion of pastoral leases of high country to ordinary renewable leases, Mr. J. Fitzharris, fields director of the department, told high country runholders at Lake Tekapo recently.

On a straight-out type of run he said that Land Settlement Board policy was quite clear. They would not agree. Similarly where there had been requests for part of a run to be put on a renewable lease (with right of freehold) the board had refused where this would upset the balance of the run.

There were odd cases, however, particularly in respect of some of the early pastoral leases, where it was recognised that the country, from present day knowledge, was perhaps wrongly classified and this was a case for another look. What had to be realised was that the rent would be fixed by an entirely different method —on an unimproved basis. Mr Fitzharris recalled that administration of leases and licences affecting the high country was based on the 1948 Land Act, which had given runholders security of tenure for the first time. The department could now offer, in appropriate cases, a permanent lease with a perpetual right of renewal. This was the

present pastoral lease. In some cases a pastoral occupation licence was given and this could be for up to 21 years, but it had no right of renewal.

In general, if a run was stable and well managed and not required for regrouping, the Land Settlement Board granted a pastoral lease and this was the basic tenure of the high country. Rents for pastoral leases were set on a stock carrying basis, said Mr Fitzharris. Ordinary farm leases were based on fixing a rental value. At the present time, with high prices ruling for land, there had been a very steep rise in farm rents while pastoral leases had remained the same. This had caused some heartburning.