ASSISTANCE BY THE GOVERNMENT

Te Ao Hou, Spring 1952, Page 24

ASSISTANCE BY THE GOVERNMENT Since the Act was passed in 1945 over £100,000 has been paid out in subsidies. In the years 1949 and 1950, especially, the applications came in hard and fast, and many projects were started. There is a slight lull now, which is natural after so much activity. The projects were mostly marae buildings—either new work or renovations—but many other marae improvements were also carried out. Sports grounds are a common item. The Ngati Manawa, Koriniti and Peninsula Committees, amongst others, asked for substantial grants to improve their water supplies. Maori arts and crafts work features sometimes in the subsidies, but far more rarely than one would imagine. The emphasis seems to lie on utility most of the time. The subsidies under the Act are different in nature from those paid to pakeha local bodies. The great difference is that the Act permits subsidies on revenue earned by committees and executives, whereas a pakeha local body has to apply for subsidies on total projects. This does not mean, of course, that subsidies can be paid for projects of which the government does not know and approve. If that were so, the pakeha local bodies would have something to complain about.