FARMING AFFAIRS

Chronicle (Levin), 2 October 1947, Page 8

FARMING AFFAIRS

(This column is supplied weekly by Ifedera t°d Farmers of New Zealaiict, and the informatiorr given is offieial, tout any vi'ews expressed are those of the Federation, and are not necessarily those of this newspaper.) . Ineome reeeived from tlie nivestnient of moiiey reeeived from. the sale of land to returned servicemen will not l)e • treated wliolly as earned iiieome. A request to that effect was made to the Government by the Dominion Conference of Federated Farmers, but the Minister of Eehabilitation lias replied that while the Government had given the question much consideration it eould not see its way to go further than the amendment to th'e taxation laws provided for in the year's Land and Ineome Tax Bill. That amendment, Mr. Skinner . said, provided a wortli-while 'coneession in the direction indicated. At the annual conference, the Federation also asked that the immediate settlement of blocks of iand, even in an unimproved or partlv improved state, and with the subsequent developement by the settler assisted, if necessary, by the Rtate fhould be undertaken. The Government, liowerever, does not agree with that proposal. The Alinister in his reply last week, said that the Government eonsiders it entirelv wrong that ex-servicemen. many with family responsibilities, shouhl 1)6 asked to c-arve for themselves an existanee from .unimproved land. The man deserved something better aiid the Government was endeavouring to provide that " sometliing" in tlie way of sections with minimum improvetviATvici /♦nrtinlAtfi

By ''minimum improvements ", Mr. Skinner said he nteaut those aiuenities necessary to insure that the ex-service-men wouid have a reasonable standard of living from the outset. Except where more or less fully lmprSved properties wero purchased and immediately sub-divided, scope was always left fo»the lnemg'realiy to improve tlieir lioldings by tlieir own efforts and if neeessarv with the help of State finance. LAND SUB-DIVISION Tn consideriiig sub-divisional schemes for the settlement of returned servicemen, the Land Setlement Board paid attenlion to ihe topography of the eountrv and cons.ulted Farming subcommittees to ensure that the l>est subdivision was ol/tained. That infonnation has been reeeived by Federated Farmers from the .Minister of Kelial)llitation in reply to the Conference resolution that in the sob-division of land, greater consideration shouhl be given to topographical eonditiops tlian to tlie money valne. The Minister also wrote that rehabilition loan limits, assocint ed witlr the production of potential produetive capacity, h'td always to be'tlie guiding principle, luft a sub-division was never sp./iled sinfply to provide for tlie value of all tlie units beingwitli

Lhe Hehabilitat ion Board 's loan limits. Many of tlie si-heines already a]iproved had included " over-scalo " units resulting from decisions to follow natural boundaries to oblain the best sub-divis-ion and ensure tdu; best use of the land. The British Ministrv of Food has advised the New Zealand Government that wliilo it is rallu-r too earlv to give a firin indicntion of its requirements of blue peas from New Zealand next vear, it eonsiders it should be able to take at least o 000 tons, more than New Zealand has exported in any one season over the past ten years. Tlial inforniation has just been reeeived by Federated Farmers from the Departlnent of Agriculture. The British

Government has also suggested that tlie niaxiiuuni priee of £04 per ton agreed 011 for tlie present season, appeared to be reasonoble but at tlie nioment it would prel'er not to name a definaro figure for tlie 1948 crop. The United Kingdom has also said that on eurreiit indications it can probably absorb 0 000 tons of niaple peas from New Zealand in 1918. Its Government is lioping for a reduction of at least £0 per ton on tlie present priee of £28 for No. 1 peas. No finajity lias. liowever, been reached reganlng that adjust nieiif in priee.