REHABILITATION COMMITTEE

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25970, 25 November 1949, Page 8

REHABILITATION COMMITTEE

RESIGNATIONS AT FAIRLIE COMMENT BY MINISTER From Our Own Reporter WELLINGTON, November 24. Regret that four members of the Fairlie Rehabilitation Committee had resigned over a land settlement case was expressed to-day by the Minister of Rehabilitation (Mr C. F. Skinner). The case was that of the Strathallan property on which two former servicemen had been placed by the Land Settlement Board and the disagreement was over a -stock valuation, members of the committee claiming that the men were being overcharged by more than £BOO. “I should first of all like to affirm any committee’s right to. disagree with an aspect of our administration,” said 'Mr Skinner, “but the Rehabilitation Committees are mostly advisory bodies and the Rehabilitation and Land Settlement Boards cannot delegate , fina P" cial responsibility to them. It is the Government, through these boards, which must accept the responsibility for the success of rehabilitation and its own permanent, qualified officers must be depended upon. “I should like to correct some false impressions, th the first place the Lands Department and State Advances Corporation valuers concerned are at Timaru and well experienced in South Canterbury conditions. They are not concerned with North Canterbury values as alleged by Mr Roberts. “The Strathallan stock was valued at the end of last season when the '-ewes were in lamb and when the former servicemen settlers later asked for a revaluation the ewes were lambing. The men were offered a compromise. They were given over a fortnight to decide whether to take the stock at the original valuation or to work the property on wages until April, 1950, when a revaluation would be more practicable. “The practice is to value stock at current market rates, no matter what it originally cost the Crown. Where prices fall the Crown bears the loss but where there has been a rise the settler is expected to pay the current price. “When on November 3, Mr Trotter spoke to my secretary by telephone from Fairlie he seemed quite satisfied that it would not be worth while for a deputation from the committee to come specially to Geraldine or Timaru to see me. I did not refuse to see the committee and believed that its members understood the position and had changed their minds about arranging an interview.”