OVER £20,000,000

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 167, 17 July 1941, Page 4

OVER £20,000,000

DEVELOPMENT PLANS

j LOWER P.W.D. EXPENDITURE i j (By Telegraph.—Parliamentary Reporter.) j WELLINGTON, this day. Although the allocation for Public Works has been reduced, the national development programme for the year provides for an expenditure of | £20,615,000, according to the Budget statement. This programme makes provision for 11 different Departments, Public Works, Railways, Education, Post and Telegraph. Lands and Survey, Native, ludustries and Commerce, Mines, State Forests, Iron and Steel and Housing. The year's loan requirement is set out as £12,950,000, of which public works takes the largest share of £5,816,000, the remaining sum of £7,134,000 being distributed amongst the other Departments. A further sum of £7,665,000 will be available Irom revenues of these activities, thus making the development programme for the year £20,615,000.

\Y hile the public works allocation represented a reduction, the Minister of Finance, Mr. Nash, said that certain classes of developmental works had had to be maintained. In this category came housing, where the ehoriage was still acute, and hydroelectric works. So far as the lat'er item was concerned, the Minister said that hydro-electricity continued to be of ever-increasing importance in the development of both primarv and secondary industries, and if the Dominion was to hold its own in the post-war era and provide suitable employment lor demobilised men, it was nccessary that there should be adequate supplies of essential power. Consequently, this year's loan allocation for hydro-electric development had been increased to J 1.987,000 as compared with last year's loan expenditure of £1.708,000.

Railway Construction

The railway construction and improvements loan allocations of i 11>7,000 represented a reduction of £1,113,000 as compared with last year's loan expenditure, but this substantial reduction had been offset by the use of a larger amount of revenue moneys which were available in the depreciation reserves of the Working Railways Account, added the Minister. The loan allocation of £607,000 for the railwayconstruction vote would be applied to advancing the various works in hand, particularly the Napier-Gis-borne and South Island Main Trunk lines. A loan allocation of onlv £150,000 would be required for railway improvements and additions mostly for rolling stock. The balance required for this purpose would be provided from the depreciation reserves.

In pursuance of a policy of concentrating on and completing essential works only, the roads allocation had been reduced to £350,000 as against last year's expenditure of £599,000, while the loan allocation for main highways was £950,000 as compared with last year' 3 loan outgo of £1,498,000.

Last year land development operations were of particular importance in preparing for post-war rehabilitation, said Mr. Nash. The total loan allocations for the purpose for this year were £2,140,000, practically the fame amount as was allocated last year, and this money was to be applied to irrigation works (£552,000) small farms development (£388,000) lands for settlement (£450,000)! Native land settlement (£250,000) miscellaneous works on the land (£200,000), and afforestation (£300,000). A further £1.212,000 for land development operations would be available from revenue receipts and earnings.

Housing Programme

Referring to housing, the Minister said that during the year 3963 housing units had been completed, bringing the total new rental units under the control of the State Advances Corporation to 10,125. Provision for an expenditure of £4,400,000 on housing had been made in the current year's estimates, of which £3,790 000 would be financed from loans and the balance from rent receipts Although there had been some easing in the demand for housing loans 907 such loans, to the value of £889,000, had been granted during the year.

The Empire's need for linen-flax supplied the reason for this year's increased allocation of £600,000 for this purpose. The allocation to the Iron and Steel Industry Account had been increased to £350,000 as compared with last year's expenditure of only £6500, owing to the necessity for some local production of steel . The public buildings loan allocation was £900,000, while that for education buildings was £500,000 and any new works undertaken under both these headings were to be only those of the most urgent nature, said the Minister. Other minor allocations for miscellaneous services such as lighthouse and harbour works telegraph extension, and plant and material made up a total of £1.229 009 of which £625,000 will be met from loans.