AUSTRALIAN NEWSLETTER Govt. Jobs For Released Prisoners Urged

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30036, 22 January 1963, Page 7

AUSTRALIAN NEWSLETTER Govt. Jobs For Released Prisoners Urged

[By FRANK PUDDICOMBE. NJIPut. Special Correspondent]

SYDNEY.

Prisoners not able to find work on their release should be given temporary jobs by the Government, according to the Leader of the Opposition in the N.S.W. Upper House (Mr A. D. Bridges). He said the prisoners should be employed by the Public Works Department, the Housing Commission, or the clerical section of the State Public Service until they could obtain other employment.

Mr Bridges was commenting on a statement by Judge Prior that people released from gaol without money were often forced to commit further crimes because of economic necessity. Judge

Prior said: “This is one of the faults of our penal system. It is why so many men commit a crime shortly after their release from prison.”

Judge Prior released on a bond a man who committed a theft two weeks after being released from prison. About six weeks ago, the Premier <Mr Heffron) said he would recommend to Commonwealth authorities that prisoners should become eligible for social service benefits some weeks before they were released from prison. ♦ * * 23121 b Shark Caught A South Australian biggame fisherman, Mr AM Dean, has improved his remarkable record of shark catches. This week near Ceduna, Mr Dean landed his sixth white shark

weighing more than a ton. This catch of 23121 b, was 16ft 9in long. Only seven sharks weighing more than one ton have been caught on rod and line anywhere in the world and Mr Dean has been credited with six of them. ♦ ♦ * Rental Control While the battle over the Landlord and Tenant Act continues in New South Wales, rent control of private homes is to be abolished in the Australian Capital Territory. , , Repeal of rent control is expected to lead to large scale building for rent by real estate companies in Canberra. To date there have been very few permanently rented homes in the national capital Two-thirds of Canberra homes are owned by the Common wealth and most of the remaining third by people who built their own dwellis believed the Government has been planning the

repeal of rent control for the last 18 months.

Business premises have been decontrolled for some years. In the rest of New South Wales trouble over lapsed clauses of the Landlord and Tenant Act continues. The clauses lapsed on December 31, when the Upper House refused to accept amendments to the act proposed by the Labour Govern- 1 ment Owners’ associations have been urging the decontrol of rents for years, and they are now threatening to evict tenants by the tens of thousands. The Government has threatened that it will act to prevent “wholesale evictions.” This week, an organisation with strong political and financial backing was formed to fight rent increases. Its activities are mainly directed against landlords’ organisations seeking higher rents. ¥ ¥ ¥ Eating Margarine Figures released recently show that Australians are eating less butter and more margarine, less beef and more mutton. Now official statistics reveal that consumption of wheat and flour as food has declint 1 sharply. While Australia’s population has risen by almost 22 per cent, tn the 10 years to 1960-01, consumption of wheat-as food has increased by only 7 per cent ir the last 13 years consumption of wheat a head has declined from 2761 b to 2541 b —a fall of 8 per cent Bread consumption was also down 101 b a head. The Bureau of Agricultural Economics did not suggest what people were eating instead of bread.