LABOUR CONFERENCE ‘Land Sharks’ And ‘Buck Seekers’ Attacked

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31057, 12 May 1966, Page 22

LABOUR CONFERENCE ‘Land Sharks’ And ‘Buck Seekers’ Attacked

GVew Zealand Prest Association) WELLINGTON, May 11. A spirited attack on the operations of “land sharks,” said to be holding young married couples in bondage, was a feature of today’s session of the Labour Party conference.

Labels of “smart alecks” and “fast buck seekers” were applied to the land speculators during the debate in which one delegate, Mr A. Russ, of the New Zealand Carpenters’ Union, drew a chorus of “hear, hears” when he said: “Young people have a greater burden than ever before in our life.”

undertaking could be returned to the community, but, more important, steps could be taken to make cheaper sections available to assist thousands of young married people. “I think this move—an enlightened public enterprise—is not only desirable and essential to the well-being of our nation, but that it is time and past time that we dealt with these sharks, who have fastened onto the future of this country by putting our young married couples in bondage,” he said. As well as this, additional opportunities for local bodies to trade and compete with private enterprise in certain fields related to their responsibilites would assist in lowering the rates on the older citizens who had laid the foundations of their particular communities, he said. “If you are as old-fashioned

The finance, Industries and commerce committee of the conference had recommended that the party’s policy to establish a local authorities finance corporation for the purpose of providing finance at the lowest possible rate of interest to local authorities be endorsed. This was adopted by the delegates—and one outcome

of the discussion was that the committee accepted an addendum that “means be investigated to provide for local bodies to undertake trading opportunities in fields related to their responsibilities.” This move was proposed by Mr A. J. Faulkner, member of Parliament for Roskill, and was aimed at authority being given to the finance corporation to advance finance to local bodies for developing , land and section for housing. Mr Faulkner said that any ! profits that resulted from this

■ as I am,” he said, “it is just commonsense or Christian I socialism,” said Mr Russ.