TENANTS INSTALLED AT ORAKEI

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 78, 24 December 1937, Page 9

TENANTS INSTALLED AT ORAKEI

— Press Association.)

Premier in Shirt Sleeves Helps to Move Furniture NEW STATE H0USES

(By Telegraph

AUCKLAND, Lasfc Night. In his shirt sleeves and assisted by; members of Parliament iu similar workmanlike attire, the Prime Minister assisted iu carrying the furniture into one of the new State houses at Orakei. It was not the first of the houses to receive a tenant, but the installation of one family in their new home was regarded more or less as an oflieial opening of the Orakei housing scheme. .The tenants who were installed to-day wero Mr. and Mrs. T. L. Skinner aud .their small bty. When the Prime Minister arrived accompanied by the Mayor, Sir Ernest Davis, he was welcomed by Mr. J. A. Lee, Parliamentary Under-Secretary in charge of Housing. There was. an attendance of about 300, including members of Parliament, officials of ,the Labour Party and workmen from the contracts which are still in progress. "I am delighted and proud to be the hsad of the Government responsible for the erection of so many fine homes in such a locality, ' ' said the Prime Minister. "The housing scheme has only been in operation for a little over 12 raonths and the actual building work only started last March, bnt to-day there are about 6000 men directly and indirectly employed. Tenders have been ealled for fhe construction of 2300 houses in 56 different towns and satisfactory tenders have been received for 1769 houses in 44 different towns. The average number of houses in each coni tract is five and altogether 83 different contraeting firms are engaged in ,the scheme. Roughly £1,500,000 has been spent to date. "We have a long way still to go," Mr. Savage continued. "There are tremendous arrears which we have to make good, arrears for which we are aot responsible. However, the fact reoiains that real homes are being brought into being and a real home is jne of the foundations of our modern jivilisation. ' ' The Prime Minister said he wished to welcome Mr. and Mrs. Skinner and all the others who were to occupy the houses at Orakei. He himself believed ln the old philosophy that "unless a man's faith was rellected in good works It profited him nothing. ' ' In the houses at Orakei the Government had something to show for its faith, but it held the view that what had been done was Dnly a start. "In this housing seheme we are trying to cater for everyone," Mr. Savage continued., "We do not claim perfection, but we do claim a considerabie advance on what has been done in the past. It is one thing to make the possession of a home possible and it is an; other thing to ensure a sufficient income for the running of the home. That is another part of our job. We want to see people in their homes with sufficient income from their work to be able to enjoy their hQmes and then when their working days are over, with a superannuation allowance which wili allow them to remain in their own homes, with no fears for the f uture. 1 ' "We are told that many of these things for which we are striving cannot be done, but I am telling the people in the name of the Government thai they can be done and they are goinj to be done. I know we cannot go fast ; er than the country's production but ii we can keep pace with that production We will do all that we have set out to do." Sir Ernest Davis congratulated the Government and Mr. Lee on the work carried out at Orakei, and then turning to Mrs. Skinner he stated that housewives moving into a new house had very little time for cooking. Accordingly he had pleasure in presenting her with a Christmgs pudding. Eeferences to the success of the housing scheme were also made by the Minister of Mines (Hon. P.'C. Webb) an-i the Attorney-General (Hon. H. G. It. MasoS), after which Mr. Lee paid tribute to the help he had received from his staff. "By next March," said Mr. Lee, "we will have tied up about £3,500,000 in housing and only the other day I told the Minister of Finance that we would soon be knocking on his door again. His reply was that we could not knock too often as long as we kept on delivering the goods. If the present rate can be maintained we should be able to. build 6000 houses next year and only on ona previous occasion has that figure been exceeded. If we can only build sufficient houses we may be given power to walk into slum streets and pull down countless houses which are not worthy of being ealled homes." At the conclusion of the speeches the Prime Minister and others divested themsclves of their coats and assisted in carrying several pieces of furniture into the house.