LAND VALUES AND SUBSIDIES.

Taranaki Daily News, 12 April 1919, Page 6

LAND VALUES AND SUBSIDIES.

Alterations needed

Speaking at Whangamomoiia on Tuesday, Mr. W. A. McCutelian said that after 44 years' experience he would say that land values were excessive. The Government should place the values in the initial stages as low as possible, and in that way the Government would obtain more revenue, and the country would be more prosperous. The reason why so many farms were going back was the excessive initial cost and the bad roads, money going into both that should have gone into reproductive work. Land should be brought into production at the earliest possible moment, and this could be best done by good roads and cutting the initial cost down to the lowest, handling every possible cent to go into reproduction, and the customs revenue, railways etc., would reap the benefit. One hundred and sixty thousand acres had been purchased at an average of from Is IOJd to 2s (id per acre, and had been sold as high as £2 ss. That crippled the settler from the start. Contrast this witli the treatment of the settler on the good land, where big estates were purchased and sold at a slight increase. Settlers in the backblocks should be given every facility.

Regarding subsidies he pointed out that all hill countries were in a terriblv bad financial condition. Two years ago they had received a grant of "£I6OO to repair damage by slips, and it had cost them in addition the whole of two years' rates. There were men whose rates were just double their rent. His County struck a rate of on the unimproved value, and in addition they had the full bridge rate and two special rates. The subsidy was fixed on the basis of a Jd rate, with the result that a rich level country was able to get the full subsidy of 5s in the £l, whereas a poor county that struck a rate of 2 l-4d only received one shilling and eiglitpence in the

Mr. J. T. Quin stressed the need for an amendment in the Counties Act, so as to reduce the subsidy to wealthy counties and increase it to poorer counties.

Hon. H. D. Guthrie agreed with a good deal pf what had been said, but the principle in force was that when a block of land was bought at, say Is fid or 2s per acre, its quality varied. They had to load the cost of surveying and roading on the land. He did liot. 'favor high values and considered that they should not charge more than it cost to put the settlers on the land. Everv acre of land for settlement was now set aside for returned soldiers, and the civilian would have fo stand aside till ail returned men requiring it were supplied. Their experiences in settling returned soldiers had taught them many lessons, and these would be applied to any case because they were found to be just, reasonable and right. Regarding the valuation question Hon Mr. Guthrie slated that the system of valuing land had changed and would, according to the value of produce. Lands had been opened up in three classes and its classification varied greatly according to different men. Taking 'the question generally the difference in the value placed on land was due to the d : fie rent men who valued it.