SALES OF WAR ASSETS

Dominion, Volume 39, Issue 28, 27 October 1945, Page 6

SALES OF WAR ASSETS

Board Reports On Work NEGOTIATIONS WITH UNRRA The total cash receipts to the end of March last from- the disposal of surplus war assets was £3,478,643, states the report of the War Assets Realization Board which was presented in the House of Representatives yesterday. The report adds that there would be many items of stores, and in considerable, quantities, for which, in their existing form,, there was no market, or at the best, only a limited market. It was proposed to set up a committee of specially. qualified men to 1 investigate and recommend the board as to the best means of disposal of such stores. The report states that negotiations have been entered into with UNRRA in respect to large quantities of uniforms, clothing generally and boots. Sales to UNRRA from April 1 to May 31 last amounted to ■annroximatelv £124,000, and further negotiations were in hand. The Netherlands East Indies was interested in the purchase of a wide range of surplus stores and had already placed orders for substantial quantities of clothing to the value of approximately £32,000. Negotiations were now proceeding in respect to clothing, boots, medical and dental stores, textiles, a variety of sundry stores, buildings, and building material. “In disposing of buildings every endeavour has been made to give priority to the requirements of Government departments, the armed services being given a preference over civil departments,” states the report. “Buildings declared as surplus by one service have in many instances been transferred to other services for use in building up existing establishments, thereby obviating expenditure on new buildings. The Public Works Department has taken over a large number of buildings to be used either as workers’ accommodation or for reconstruction as class-rooms, assembly halls, and so on, on h'ehalf of the Education Department. “The majority of the recreation halls ex-surplus American camps have been taken over by the Education Department for re-erection as school assembly halls; one such hall, together with a number of other buildings, was transferred and re-erected at the Polish Refugee Camp in Pahiatua. The Housing Construction Department has, in addition to utilization of huts for additional farm workers’ accommodation. taken over a number of Air Force hostels and also the Castor Bay Battery Camp for conversion into State housing units. The Bands and Survey Department has acquired, a number of hutments and other buildings for temporary and permanent use on farms for rehabilitated ex-servicemen. The Land and Income Tax Department, in the execution of its decentralization policy, has purchased several of the higher-standard buildings for re-erection as office accommodation.” Storage of Wool. The board, adds the report, has co-op-erated to the maximum in making surplus buildings available to meet the urgent and unprecedented demand for wool storage throughout the country. In the Wellington area the R.N.Z.A.F. station buildings at Rongotai have been set aside for this purpose. Satisfactory arrangements had been concluded with the United States authorities in respect to charges for the use by United States Forces of New Zealand camps and buildings nt Fiji. Arrangements .were now well in hand for the transfer to New Zealand of buildings surplus to the United States Forces for use for wool storage and other purposes, and negotiations hatl been entered into with representatives of the Admiralty for the sale to them of hilts and buildings for use of the British Pacific Fleet.