FARM LAND FOR SERVICEMEN

Press, Volume LXXXI, Issue 24736, 29 November 1945, Page 6

FARM LAND FOR SERVICEMEN

POSITION OF VENDORS DISCUSSED A suggestion that when the Rehabilitation Department had decided not to buy farming land offered for returned servicemen, the owners of the land shoitfd be free, after the expiration of a month, to offer the land for sale elsewhere, was made by Mr A. M. Carpenter at the first meeting of the North Canterbury executive of Federated Farmers yesterday. Mr Carpenter moved a resolution to that effect. There had been cases in his district and in other districts where, after the Rehabilitation Department had rejected offers, later sales of the properties to other buyers had been prevented by the department, Mr Carpenter said. Some scheme should be found whereby, after the department had definitely rejected an offer, the vendor could confidently offer land for sale elsewhere. Other members said there had been cases where local returned services' organisations had persuaded the Government to buy land for servicemen after offers of the land had been refused by the department. The chairman (Mr G. H. Grigg) supported a suggestion that any present difficulties would right themselves in time. He did not think any action should be taken by the executive. Mr Carpenter's motion was not put to the meeting.