ON THE LAND.

Taranaki Daily News, 31 January 1922, Page 5

ON THE LAND.

POSITION OF EX-SOLDIERS.

HELP OVER DIFFICULTIES.

NO SERIOUS LOSSES

By Telegraph.—Press Association.

Wellington, Last Night. In the House to-night the Hon. D. H. Guthrie moved the second reading of the Discharged Soldiers’ Settlement Bill, which he said was designed to help returned men who went on the land by making things as easy as possible for them under the difficult conditions which had arisen. The difficulties were accentuated by the variety of tenures of lands taken for soldier settlements. In order to protect the public, whose money was used for settlement, the Minister retained the right to authorise transfers of properties. The Minister said that so far there had been only sixty foreclosures on discharged soldiers’ farms, involving an area of 27,091 acres, valued at £126,089. Mr. Guthrie added that the losses on soldiers’ settlements were not expected to .be serious. A high financial authority had told him that even if the Government lost £1,000,000 out of the £21,000,000 it was spending on the repatriation of soldiers it would still be in a position that would deserve congratulation on the good work it was doing for the men who fought for the country.

Mr. T. M. Wilford (Leader of the Opposition) declared that the Minister’s speech was an admission of the failure of the Government’s soldier settlement policy. It was an admission that the Government had got into a mess over its purchases of land privately at high nrices, '”d this Bill was designed to try to gloss . over. The Min-, ister said there had been only sixty foreclosures. That may be; but what about the men who had to abandon their selections. He (Mr. Wilford) believed a' very large number of men were unable to carry on because the price of land was far too high. The Bill, probably, was a necessary measure, but he doubted if it was put in the best form to achieve the end desired. In going to the aid of soldiers on the lam! it was necessary to consider the postponement of the payment of interest, and he congratulated the Minister on the clause dealing with this. Mr. Wilford suggested that the Government might use this as an argument to induce private mortgagees to treat with similar leniency soldier settlers who found themselves in financial difficulties.

The Hon. J. G. Coates defended the private purchase of lands in certain cases, as compulsory purchase was often only accomplishable at a price far beyond the real value.

Mr. R. McCallum (Wairau) contended that the weakness of the various Government land purchase policies in New Zealand had been piecemeal buying, which resulted in inflated values. In this respect the present Government had followed the bad example of earlier Administrations. He considered the Bill might be safely held over till next year, as with improving prices for produce the men on the land had every chance to pull through successfully. The Minister, in reply, reiterated the efforts made by the Government to meet the requirements of soldiers, first to provide them with land, and subsequently to tide them over their difficulties. At the same time the Government was not going to make any rash concessions to soldiers, but was going to conduct its business relations with soldiers on business lines. The Bill was read a second time and referred to the Lands Committee.