LAND REFORM.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1579, 24 October 1912, Page 6

LAND REFORM.

THE GOVERNMENT BILL. DE-TAILS DISCUSSED. At 7.40 p.m. the Land] Laws Amendment Bill came up for consideration in Committee. Town Planning. On Clause 3, which deals with town planning, .Dr. A. K. NEWMAN Wellington East) recommended the Prime Minister to embody a provision requiring that streets, in towns likely to be populous, and to be traversed by tramways, should havo rounded corners. In Wellington, Dr. Newman said, a, great deal of money had been spent in purchasing land so that, street corners might be rounded off at places where the traffic was heavy. Mr. A.,M. MYERS (Auckland East) urged the Prime Minister to consider the advisability of importing an expert townplanner. ,

Several Opposition members spoke approvingly of the town-planning clause. Mr. G. W. RUSSELL (Avon) said that although the clause provided that proposed reserves must bo shown on n plan there was tio provision for actually settins aside these reserves. The Hon. W. F. MASSEY promised to bear in mind the suggestions raised, amongst others the suggestion about rounded street corners and the employment of a town-planning export. Mr. W. A. VEITCH (Wonganui) opposed the proposal to import a town-plan-ning expert. The Dominion, ho contended, could produce its own experts. Dp. A. K. NEWMAN (Wellington East) proposed to divide the House against the following new sub-clause, inserted by the Lands Committee:—"Provided that no right-of-way in any subdivision of land for a. town shall be of less width than CC feet, except with the consent of the Governor-in-Council." Mr. MASSEY said that under the present law streets oould bo reduced in width to a minimum width of 1(1 feet. Ho was trying to improve upon this by enacting that streets must be (!(> feet wide savo in exceptional ca=es. Mr. G. W. WITTY (Iliccarton) said that tho clause was undoubtedly bettor than tho existing law. He. would support a proposal to strike out the reference to I ho Govornor-in-Conncil. So amended, the clause would simnlj; increase the miuimum gfceafcrtvidUu i

Mr. T. M. WILFORD (Unit) said that; in a city like. Wellington town-planning would be' a dream for many years In come. Tho trouble in such cities was a financial one. Enormous sums had been spent in Wellington in widening one or two street.-.. Dr. NEWMAN moved that the reference to the tiovcruor-in-Cimucil be deleted. Mr. MASSEY declined lo accept the amendment, and it was defeated on a division by 3S votes to 111.. Setting Aside Reserves. Mr. .11. U. ELL (Christclmrcli South) contended that the Bill did not make sufficient provision for setting aside reserves in new-towns. Tho Hon. W. F. MASSEY admitted that there was something in the objection. I'iiere would be another Land Bill next •session, he said. He did not wish to overload the Bill. He proposed to have a clause drafted to meet the objections raised, by members on tho other side. 'Jo embody such a provision at present would mean confiscating the land, a thing lie had no intention of doing. A clause enabling the Government to compensate owners of land would have to be brought iu with the clause making it obligatory to wt aside reserves.

Clause 3 was approved on the voices. Clauses three to six, dealing with the appointment of deputy-commissioners of Crown lands and providing for a uniform system of arbitration were passed without discussion.

Section "a., a new clause inserted by the Lands Committee, suggesting that at ,every ballot for laud preference should be given to landless applicants with families dependent upon them, or to applicants who had within two years immediately preceding the ballot competed at least twice unsuccessfully at any previous land ballot, was discussed at somo length.

Mr. MASSEY said that it, was somewhat surprising to hear what had been suid by hon. members who had supported this clause on the Lands Committee, but now said that it was going too far. The clause gavo preference to unsuccessful applicants and to married men with families. This was all that it did. He invited members to pass-, the clause; if necessary it could be improved in tho Land Bill which would be introduced next session.

The clause was approved without amendment. '

Clause 8 provides that a Crown tenant selling the goodwill of his' holding must pay any back rent remitted by the Minister.

Mr. G. WITTY (Riccarton) said that this might result in compelling unsuccessful settlers to retain their holdings instead of giving place to settlers who •would make better use of the land. Mr. G. W. Russell (Avon) asked whether interest on back-rent would bo demanded. Mr. MASSEY said that this clause was intended for the small struggling settler. Mr. R. W. Smith (Waimarinoj moved to increase from three to four years the aggregate period for which the Minister may postpone rent payments. -■ • . A Point of Order. On a point of order raised ;by Mr. Mnssey, the amendment was ruled out of order, the reason given being- that it in.vdlved an.increased expenditure.. Mr. Smith moved that-the- Speaker's ruling be taken, and this course was agreed to. * ' After hearing the point of order discussed, Mr. Speaker ruled that Mr. Smith's amendment was in order. He stated that it was on all fours with a proposal to postpono or remit a fax. A pri- , vato member was,competent to bring forward a proposal of this character. Tho House went back into committee, and Mr. Smith moved his amendment. The amendment was lo?t on tho voices. Mr. G. WITTY (Riccarton) moved an amendment that the clause providing that rent remitted shall be repaid when a transfer is made,- to the effect that at the discretion of the Minister the rent and interest should lie mndo a charge upon the incoming tenant. The Hon. W. V. MASSEY at first accepted the amendment, but after a warning from Mr. T. M. Wilford.-ho said he was not. satisfied with the' phrasing of tho amendment, and ho promised to have tho clause- redrafted to give effect to Mr. Witty's amendment. This assurance satis 7 fied Mr. Witty, and he withdrew his amendment. The clause was passed. 'On the next clause (9), providing that national, endowment land may at the discretion of the Governor be exchanged for other land, and that.a title in fee be given to the endowment land, Mr. G. W. Russell moved an amendment to provide that tho power should be exercised only on the recommendation of the Land Purchase Board.

The Hon. W. F. Massey accepted tho amendment in substance, but altered the form of it. It was still satisfactory to Mr. Russell, and he withdrew " his amendment. Mr. Massey explained that it was not intended that the clause should apply to any but'small areas, and the purpose of it was to avoid providing for exchanges of lands every session in the 'iWashiiig-Up" Bill. The insertion of the proviso was agreed to on the voices.

_ Mr. It. M'CALLUM (Wairau) moved to insert the following sub-clause: "in like manner it shall be lawful for the Governor, whenever he deems it expedient in the public interest to do so, to sell on such tercns as may be prescribed by regulations any bush or swamp lands forming part of the national endowment; Provided that before offering for sale any such land, and on each occasion, the Governor shall, by Order-in-Council, declare an area of settlement lands (not bush or. -swamp) of equal or greater value to be set apart as land for the purposes of the national endowment iii lieu of the endowment lands so proposed to be sdd." Ho explained that he moved the amendment merely to bring the matter under the notice of. the Minister, so that ho might incorporate it in a subsequent Land Bill.

The sub-clause was rejected on the voices.

Clauses 9a to 13, all machinery amendments of existing law, were passed without discussion. .

Section 11 gave rise to a little questioning, and' the Prime Minister explained that the object of it-was to change the whole system ol leasing -small grazing, runs. At present the rents were assessed on a 2J per cent, basis, but the Bill proposed to allow the.Land Boards to fix the rents. ; \

The next clause to be discussed was 19A, providing for the extension of a license for five years in « case where the holder of a pastoral lease had suffered exceptional loss of stock by the severity of the winter and heavy snowfalls.

The Hon. D. BUDDO moved an amendment to provide for a similar concession for loss of pasture by fire, but the Prime Minister pointed out that the proposed amendment would leave the way open, to fraud. A lessee who wanted an extension of his license need do no more than set fire to his grass.

Mr. W. C. BUCHANAN. (Wairarapa) moved .an amendment to permit of the extension of licenses for ten years instead of five in such circumstances.

The PRIME MINISTER agreed to accept an amendment to increase the term to sevon years, and Mr. Buchanan adopted the Prime Minister's suggestion ond altered his amendment accordingly. The amendment was carried on the voices.

> The. Hon. W. V. MASSEY (Prime. Minister) moved an amendment to Clause 20, providing that on the expiry of lease of small grazing runs the land may be disposed of by renewable lease. The ainendment was follows:—"On the expiration of the original lease the lessee shall be entitled (o receive the value of the improvements together with' the vnlue, if any, of the right of renewal which he would have had, if this' section had not passed, with respect to the allotments of which he has not been granted a new lease." The • amendment was greed to on the voices. Progress was reported aften Clause 20 had been passed, and the House rose at'l.ss a.m.