SETTLEMENT OF SOLDIERS

Southland Times, Issue 24887, 29 October 1942, Page 6

SETTLEMENT OF SOLDIERS

PRESENT LIMITATIONS The present position concerning the settlement of ex-soldiers on the land is outlined as follows in Review, the official, organ of the Returned Services’ Association:— “Leasehold.—There is no area of Crown land ready for settlement at the present time, and the prospects of any land being available fo rsome time are very remote. The Small Farms Board has areas available, several of which the association has had inspected and which are reported to be, in every v.’ay, suitable for closer settlement. The plans of the blocks the association has seen show proposed subdivisions into reasonably-sized farms. “Because of the difficulty at present of erecting buildings, procuring wire and piping, no farms are ready for occupation. Early in the war the Small Farms Board held good stocks of all developmental materials and was building these stocks in anticipation of the men returning, but the primary needs of the armed forces caused these materials to be diverted and used for military purposes. “Freehold. —The State Advances Corporation, working under instructions from its Minister, and the concessions provided for returned servicemen as set out in Ministerial statements on the Rehabilitation Act, has been financing approved servicemen into the purchase of one-man farms. The limit of finance for these men is fixed at £3OOO for land and £1250 for stock (in exceptional cases £3500 and £l5OO respectively), for each settler. These advances will be granted only when the value of the security is good and the man capable and experienced. 'Hie 100 per cent, advance and certain interest concessions for the first few years are likewise dependent on the experience and capabilities of the applicant and the suitability of the farm offered. “Applications for assistance in farm settlement are to be made direct to the district offices of the State Advances Corporation and no application is finally rejected until it has been placed by the State Advances Corporation before the Rehabilitation Board. “It should be stressed that inexperienced men will not be placed on farms as owners. There will, however, be provision for training suitable men who wish to become farmers. Applicants should realize that a farm may be rejected, but the applicant approved. It is then a matter of finding an acceptable farm property for the applicant and patience is sometimes required.”