AGRICULTURAL LEGISLATION.

Shannon News, 18 November 1924, Page 4

AGRICULTURAL LEGISLATION.

RESUI/TS OF LAST SESSION.

The primary producers of New Zealand have .received, a commendable amount of attention during: the Parliamentary session just ended. Agricultural legislation of various kinds has been brought down and placed on the New Zealand Statute books and some of our farming members in .the House have off and on bed* in the limelight. A short Teview of the .most important of-these measures may be of interest to the readers of these farming columns. Mortgages Final Extension. *' This Bill had a very chequered career and caused considerable comment in and out of the House. Finally passed by the House of Representatives, it was , rejeoted by the , Upper House and a compromise had to be eventually agreed upon by both parties. As the Act stands now:— (1) The moratorium will expire on March 31st. 1925. >■ (2) Applications for extension of mortgages must be made on or before January 31st, 1925. (3) Court may extend mortgages till March 31st. 1927. , ■■ (4) For all icases, motrgagees must give three months notice before taking any action. (5) Under no condition can mortgagor be sold up before July 1925. Dairy Produce Export Amendment. This amendment to the principal Act was more or less of a formal nature. It, simply authorised the Board to sp<jnd and utilise money in certain directions. A similar amendment was made to the. Meat Export;Control Act. Land and Income Tax Amendment.

A reduction of Land and Income tax amounting to approximately .£718,000 is claimed.by the Government under this amendment. Although a reduction in* the rate of both Land and Income tax is provided for, what is of more interest and importance to the producer, js the all but total abolishment of the obnoxious mortgage tax. The whole of'the mortgages on land up to a capital value of £IO,OOO may now be deducted before any Land tax is payable. Land Transfer (Compulsory Registration of Titles.) This Act is .very little known among farmers but may become of the utmost importance to some property owners. It provides that properties which are not at present under the provisions of the Land Transfer Act shall be brought under that Act by a process of examination of titles by the Registrar-Genaral and without the payment of the transfer fees as required in the case

of transfers under the principal. Act. The 'transfer of such properties (other than under the Land Transfer Act) has in many instances been protracted and expensive, and the present Act should have the effect of making it very much easier and leas costly. Dairy Industry Amendment. This measure was fully.explained, in our last farming 'notes. It legalises the allotments of • doubtful shares issued by dairying companies to its suppliers. It .alsoi deals with the compulsory Supply of milk, and cream, f etc. Chattels Transfer Amendment. This; Bill as brought before the house was really a consolidating measure with a few new clauses aded. Producers are mainly concerned with that part of the bill dealing with bills of sale, over farm stock, implements, machinery, etc. Strong objection was taken to the definition of the word ("stock" in the amendment, which seemed to. infer, that if a man gave a mortgage over a portion, of his stock which might include say a defi'-u which ; might include say a definite number of cows, the whole of his stock, including horses* were included. Provisions were therefore made in the Lower 'House limiting "stock".to

stock described in the Bill. This definition, however, was thrown out by the Legislative Council, and in the present Act the definition "stock" is "delimited," to the stock set out in the bill of sale. In other words, a bill of sale over a herd of cows includes all future cows, but not necessarily sheep, horses, etc. It only refers, to the "class" of-stock described in,the'bill. Among the measures held over, the most important is, perhaps the "Farmland Mortgage /Associations Bill" which will be fully explained in our next farming columns.