GALATEA ESTATE

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 232, 23 May 1932, Page 4

GALATEA ESTATE

The Minister of Lands, the Hon. E. A. Ransom,^ has issued his promised statement in reply to criticism initiated by the "Morning Post" of the Government's methods in the development,. or more properly in delaying the development of the Galatea estate for closer settlement. As a reply to the definite critieisms advanced, the Minister's statement falls very far short of what the country has a right to expect. On only one point does Mr. Ransom come anywhere near an answer, and even here he supplies only a partial One and begs most of the qiiestion. He says that "the second phase of the development work is just about to begin. This will include the cultivation and grassing of land at present carrying indifferent pasture and the topdressing and reconditioning of the balance of the estate." If this has all along been intended and is not a recent decision following the /'Morning Post's" criticism, why has the matter been made a secret of. Our action in drawing attention to the position at Galatea was only taken after repeated attempts to obtain information regarding the Government's immediate plans had failed and it became apparent that the reported cessation of operations for an indefinite but protracted period was more than an idle rumour. Even now, while stating that the necessary cultivation and topdressing of the land to convert it into dairy pastures is to proceed immediately, Mr. Ransom says that this work will not provide employment for a great number of men. Compared with roadmaking, fencing and scrub-cutting, this is true — and perfectly obvious. It is equally beside the question for the reason that none of this work has, or had a day or two ago, been commenced and our charge was that nothing was being done to advance the development of the estate and, so far as could be ascertained, nothing was intended to be done for some time to come. All the rest of the Minister's long statement is confined to a resume of the past, with a string of perfectly obvious conclusions drawn therefrom, such as the amount of employment hitherto provided. Mr. Ransom also goes out of his way to defend the efficiency of the officers of the Public Works Department, which has never been questioned. What was challenged, was the Government's policy in delaying development after so much public money had been sunk in the estate and at a time when they were laying claim to a really progressive land settlement policy as one of the principal means by which they h'oped to help the country back to prosperity. And now, on summing up the Minister's statement it is clear that the Government, if not proposing actually to close down at Galatea completely, intends at best to proceed so slowly with the -final preparations for its settlement as practically to amount to closing down. Why, otherwise, the emphasis on the small amount of employment available. Under a bold policy of development designed to make the estate suitable for settlement as quicklv as possible— and no other policy can possibly be justified— a comparatively large number of men could have been employed 011 ploughing, working and seeding the land to be regrassed and in topdressing those areas which are fit for such treatment. This, rather than the spring, is the season when such work should , have been undertaken, but nothing has been done. The only c mclusion to be drawn from Mr. Ransom's defence, therefore, is that, for all practica! purposes, the development of the estate has been stopped and is not intended to be prosecuted in the immediate future with that energy which its "importance to the State and the prospective settlers," to say nothing of this district, unquestionably warrants. This will not satisfy the public and the sooner the Minister and the Government realise this and get on with the work in real earnest, the better.