MORE RURAL HOUSES WANTED

Chronicle (Levin), 10 July 1947, Page 6

MORE RURAL HOUSES WANTED

DEPUTAT10N POINTS OUT RELATIONSHIP TO GREATER PRODUCTION The relationship hetween greatly increased production and the provision of rural housi-ng was pointed out by the deputation of Federated Farmers which met the Dominion ■Gommissioner of Works, Mr. McKillop, and the Dominion Building Controller, Mr. McPhail, in Wellington recently whep. urging the . implementation of the Rural Housing Scheme of 1944-45 and other plans brought forward at a meeting of Federated Farmers provinces at Feilding in May. "

Federated Farmers oft'ered tlieir services in order to develop a rural housing schenie throughout the various branches in the .Dominion, the deputation stated. Its desire was to co-operate with the Government and seek support in a great drive for increased primary production. Of the many conditions and shortages retarding production the major factor was rural housing for the use of farrn workers. Eeviewing the conditions on farms in rural areas throughout the Dominion, the deputation stated that 40,000 farmers' sons and farm workers had served with the armed forces during the war and in their absence the work on farms had been carried out by elderly farmers, women, children and 5000 grade A men and about the same number of grade B pien who had been retained on farms as essential workers. Although these men and women, by working 60 and 70 hours a week, had reached a peak of production unexeelled in any other industry, it should be realised that severe deterioration of the farm lands hau taken place. Fences were in disrepair on praetically every farm in the country, drains had mot been cleaned for many years owing to lack of labour, this threatening lower carrying eapaeity and lower production, the eneroachment of noxious weeds, fern and scrub had deteriorated farm lands and caused loss of pasture over the past seven years owing to lack of labour to deal with it, pastures had not been ploughed or sown for from seven to ten years and large tracts of grass land were now running out, lack of labour made it praetically impossible to topdress the country now that fertilisers were becoming available, and the depopulation of country areas, owing to the greater attractions of city life, had taken the country workers away and, even if they wished to return, the housing was not available for them. Farmers were changing from dairying to sheep, and sheep farmers were changing from breeding ewes to dry sheep. These conditions had been brought about by grim necessity, mostly on aCcount of shortage of labour and the housing situation for farm workers. The farm labour position today was serious. The 40,000 men who served with the armed forces were back m New Zealand. Most of them were now married and approximately 20,000 were in city employment mainly because they could not obtain housing accommodation .on farms or in rural areas. Thesh - men,. together with some 20,000 grade. B men who left the land in the past few years, now found that the higher wages in the eities were more tlian cancelled out by house rents, train and bus fares and higher cost of living, and would welcome the cliance to return to the land if the farmers could oifer them good housing accommodation. The contention that uiese men .would return to the land was supported Dy the fact that farmers who had housing accommodation on their farms had received some 30 replies to each advertisement for labour, most of these men being married and anxious to get.back to the land. Between Oetober, 1944, and np to March, 1945, the Government announcea a rural housing scheme for labour to assist in the vital.need for food production for Britain, stressing that the urgency would cont'.nui into post-war years, the deputation said. Special emphasis had been laid on the permanent types of housing by the Minister of Housing, Hon. B. Roberts, as follows: — Type E house, four rooms, £750; type D house, five rooms, £9S0; rental type G house, three rooms, £20 per a'nnum rental. Of the three types offered, the figures for those aetually erected had been: Type E, 55; type D, 89; type C, 550. Although a total of 145 permanent type houses was erected, it was understood that a greater humber running into hundreds had been applied for, but the Housing Department had not completed the contracts because of the shortage of labour and materials. Authentic figures on this seore couia not be obtained because the State aepartments concerned would not release them. It was asked that the scheme Je reinstituted with absolute priority and that the types E and D again be ofi'erea. As the type C house, made from army huts, was no longer available it was also asked that a similar three-roomed dwelling costing about" £500 be made available at a rental of 10s per week. In the event of a farmer making a cash payment on the houses obtained from the scheme it was suggested that his income for taxation purposes be reduced to about £200 a year for five years, so extinguishing the capital expenditure on the £980 nnit. Smaller amounts for the £750 unit could be arranged to suit the purcliase priee. If, however, the farmer required finaneial assistance this should be provided through the State Advanees Corporation under the terms outlined for the 1944-45 scheme (mortgage to be taken by the .State Advanees Corporation and seeurity to be by way of urgency under the Farmers' Loans Emergency Regulations, 1940). The term of the loan to be 15-25 years over which the principle would be payable with interest at 4$ per cent. The deputation enthusiastically agreed with the Government 's decision agreeing to the erection of State rental houses for dairy faetory workers on cooperative dairy land. While this" need for housing was justified at the processing works for the farmers' products, it was submitted that an equhi measure of State housing should be supplied for farm workers at the producing point of operations on the land. State rental houses should be erected for farm workers in townships adjacent farm lands. The rental tvouid bo

guaranteed and paid by the local branch of Federated Farmers which would collect the rental from the "farmer groups", the farm worker to proceed to work by the best means oi transport, approximately 20 farmers forming a "group'-' and guaranteeing the worker constant employment for the whole year. Other farmers in the area who did not wish to beeome members of a group but desired assistance during illness, would pay a small sum to be agreed upon each week and to be entitled to the assistance of a farm worker in the event of sickness. Particular stress was laid on tne point of the provision of "farm help" where a farmer was taken ill on a single unit farm where he . had no help and had to call in neighbours to do 1ns work. In this way the land deteriorated and a loss of production resulteu. If single unit farmers could have the assistance. of a capable farm worker for a week or fortnight each year, it would mean a substantial increase in production and a great raising of the morale of the single unit farmer. Asking for the allocation of priority of 1000 houses for the next 12 xnonths the deputation drew attention to tne fact that, although 9463 houses were erected in the Dominion for the year ending in March, 1947, only 120 of that number were erected on farm lands. In the three years 1944-47, 1067 houses were erected on farms, and in the same period 26,463 houses had been erected throughout the Dominion. Every fully producing farm in the Dominion created work for at least 20 men in processing, .transport and secondary industry. Every farm worker employed on the land created employment for not less than ten in other industries.

While it was hoped that the Government would recognise the farmers' working hours in excess of 40 per week by increased payments, it was realised that the economic stability of the eountry would collapse if the farmer were. paid on the same basis as other sections for overtime in excess of 4U hours. Apart from the measure of justice the Government could extend to the farmer by increased payments for his produce, it was suggested that Ihe Government could offer the scheme m its entirety to the farmer in recognition of the difference between the amount he obtained and the amount to which he was entitled compared with other sections of the eommunity enjoying the 40-hour week and. overtime payments. Concluding, Ihe t deputation drew attention to the fact that the Prime Minister had stated that never in the past 11 years had the economic stability of New Zealand been in greater' danger. It was suggested that this scheme of attraeting farm workers back to the land to fully develop and increase the Dominion 's production, would have an immediate and stabilising effect on the economic position of New Zealand.