N.Z FARMERS' UNION.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIX, Issue 77, 22 July 1914, Page 8

N.Z FARMERS' UNION.

[Pku Pr.r.fiß Association.) ■Wellington, .Inly 21. The New Zealand Fanners’ I uion Conference adopted llie following remits : LAND VALUES. That the Conference protests against tha present system of land valuation,' because the unimproved value is forced up at the expense of improvements, and in valuing sufficient allowance is not made for costs and loss of revenue incurred in preparing land for cultivation; tnat the Government amend the Valuation Act, in the direction of having the whole of special loans classeu as improvements, a deduction of the repaid portion only being allowed to each, and the property owner’s share to bo ascertained by capitalising the special rate paid ; that as the present method of valuation is unsatisfactory, the local body should he empowered to appoint a man to act with the C* o " vernvneut land valuer; that the moitgage tax be amended , so that it will be on the same basis as income tax. RECIPROCAL TEA DE. That the attention,of the Government he drawn to the desirableness of encouraging reciprocity within the Empire. NATIVE LANDS. That on and after March 31 of each year the Registrar of Native Lands he notified of all rates remaining unpaid to each local body, and that the unpaid rate constitute a legal charge upon the native land, and statutory power be given to register the amount against the land. the boot trade. Speaking ou the Auckland remit urging the Dominion Executive “to watch closely any attempt ,by ipterusted parties to further increase Customs duties,” Captain ColbecK (Auckland) said it cost tiie country £2/6,27.) to foster the boot .trade. Tha average wages of the men amounted ,o 7s 3d per day and of the women ro 3s lid, and the whole wages earned was £15)7,793. If the trr *•- cided to pay the whole of the wages, and'let the hoot operatives sit idle, a saving of £78,8(9. would be effected annually. The, average duty on hoots was 31 par cfnt. To this must be added freight and landing charges. Boots costing 8s 9d in England could nob be sold in New Zealand ac less than 17s .6:1. The remit was carried. LAND TAXATION. There was a discussion on land taxation, when Mr E. Maxwell (Taranaki) moved —“That this Conference cannot soe any valid reason why money invested in land should hr taxed differently to money invested in other industries, hut if it hs not taxed in this manner the tax as indicated in the remit previously scut to the Dominion Conference lie adopted, viz., that «s the present system cf valuing laud for taxation purposes has proved * complete failure, owing to tha impossibility of accurately separating the improved from tbo unimproved value, this conference considers * much fairer and much simpler way would he to tax on the annual value, with the sarna exemptions as capital invested in. other industries, the annual value to he fl par cent, of the capital value.” In Taranaki, said the mover, the question was fully gone into, the ratebook was gone through, and it was found that the land was most unjustly taxed at present. The exemption of £SOO was very small as compared with the exemption of £3OO on incomes. Mr Maxwell, in reply to criticism, said that the man who took un land with little capital should be taxed to a greater extent than the man with capital. The man who considered improvements to his farm to tho detriment of his personal comfort was the one who was the greatest asset to the State, and in order to protect him the remit was brought forward. —The remit was carried hr 13 votes to 7.