FREEHOLD WANTED.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1259, 14 October 1911, Page 7

FREEHOLD WANTED.

HARDSHIPS OF LEASEHOLDERS. AN INSTRUCTIVE DISCUSSION. Members of Parliament' yesterday enjoyed the somewhat raro experience of hearing that steadfast leaseholder, tho member for Lyttelton, urge that certain leaseholders should be allowed to acquire the freehold in order to escape an unduo burden of taxation. Tho Lands Committoo reported on the petition of tho Koimata settlers, near Christchurch, who asked to obtain tho freehold of tho sections they had lcasld under the Lands for Settlement sdhemo some fourteen years ago. The committee recommended tho Government to find a way out by permitting the settlers to release part of their sections. Mr. Laurcnson said the petitioners were asking for the freehold of the land, which had been bou.jht by tho Government at £60 an aero, and leased in ouo, two, three and four-acre blocks. Population had grown, and the land was now worth £300 per acre. The settlers were paying a rental of £8 and ,£lO per block, but owing to the rating on unimproved values their rates wore £10 and £12 per block, "hit position was a peculiar hardship. The leases allowed no provision for valuation'for improvements, ner for cutting up. The lessees now asked fdr the freehold, not at the original value, but at half the increased value, and ho thought that this was a most proper and reasonable requtst. Mr. Dillon said he was downright pleased to hear the remarks of tho hon. member for Lyttelton (Laughter.) -He' was pleased to hear that he was in favour of the freehold. (Opposition ''Hear, hears.") He had no doubt that, like the member for Avon, the member for Lyttelton would be a freeholder' altogether before very long. Mr. Pearce said this was a good illustration of the fallacy of the leasehold and of rating on. unimproved values. They could not get a better illustration than had been given by the member for Lyttelton.. The back-blocks settler was not allowed full value for his labour and his improvements, so that these men if they got their land at half its present value would be getting more than the baok-blocks settler if the latter got his section at the. original value. He (Mr. Pearce) quite agreed that the petitioners should get the freehold, but he was surprised ishe.t. the member for Lvttelton should be the one to advocate it after the sentiments he had been expressing for years past. No doubt many others sitting beside him would come round before long. Mr. Fowlds said the land had increased in value owing' to the industry and the population in the neighbourhood, and if tho people were to reap some of that increase m value the only way they could I do it was by rating, on unimproved values. It was absolute rubbish that the. backblocks settler was only getting half the value for his improvements. • Mr. Lang said, it was amusing to hear Mr. -Laurenson 'advocating the freehold at half the present value. Surely if it was wrong to' steal a loaf it was wrong also to steal half a loaf. The adoption of rating on unimproved values had made untenable the position of tho poor man who desired to have a house with a bit of land around it, in tho suburbs. The House should be grateful to the member for Lyttelton for bringing up such a striking case of the injurious effect of rating on unimproved value in the suburbs. The effect of the system had been that, in Wellington and elsewhere, where houses once stood in open spaces, three houses now stood. Mr. Laurenson stated, in personal explanation, that he had always favoured giving • tenants of land leased for 999 years, the right to sell on terms reasonable to tho State. Mr. Ell admitted that some subdivisions had been made in Hobson Street since the adoption of rating on unimproved values, .but he denied that the general effect had been to compel subdivision. Large cities in the Old Country, where this system was not in operation, were more crowded than- any,'-others in'tho" world. Overcrowding might take place under any system. If the local bodies desired to stop it they should resort to by-laws and set up a limit. Mr. Lang: Then the poor man would not get a house at all.' Mr. Duncan said the discussion had shown how little many of the members who had spoken had known wliat they were talking about. Most of the sections affected were taken up as market gardens, but with the development of the district the taxes had grown to be more than double the rent.