LAND VALUES LEAGUE

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 81, 2 October 1929, Page 20

LAND VALUES LEAGUE

URBA2s T FARM RATING

A meeting of the Wellington branch of the New Zealand Land Values League was held in the Trades Hall on Monday evening, Mr. P.- J. O'Regan presiding.

A long letter was read from the Pnmo Minister replying seriatim to the matters brought before him by deputation from the league on Sth "August, and satisfaction was expressed at the intimation that fuller, statistics were to be provided as from this year regarding the payment of land tax and the classification of lands liable thereto as urban and rural. It was resolved that the chairman be authorised to address a further letter to the Prime Minister reiterating the league's attitude in conneciion with the questions raised. Considerable discussion took place on the Urban Farm Lands Rating Bill introduced by the Hon. Minister of Internal Affairs, and the opinion Was expressed by several members that if the Bill were passed land speculators would start planting potato and tomato patches in order to'evade their proper share of taxation. It was decided to write tho Minister asking him to receive a deputation on the Bill.

The following resolution was passed in connection with the Wellington City Empowering and Amendment Bill now before Parliament: "That in connection with the Wellington City Empowering and Amendment Bill, this league cord? ally endorses the provisions of clause 4, under which it is proposed to con±er power on the Wellington City.Corporation, before consenting to any subdivision of land for sale, to impose such conditions regarding drainage as it deems reasonable."

In the course of the discussion it was asserted that a profit of £50,000 had been made by the salo of Miramar lands, that the recent flood damage had proved that those who sold had been allo.ed to sell tho land without making proper provision for drainage, and that as a result the citizens of Wellington were now to be made responsible to the extent of £100,000. Tho chairman reported that he had attended personally befoi _ the Local Bills Committee and had given evidence in favour of the tin tvii a^ Gu U Was Probable that the Bill would be amended in the direction of providing machinery for an appeal from the decision of the City Council, and, of course, there would be no objection to that, inasmuch as what the public interest required was that a matter of such importance should be fully and publicly discussed

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE. Several members raised the question of issuing a manifesto on the unemployed difficulty, especially as the Government had now committed itself definitely to unemployment insurance, which they roundly condemned in that it had proved a failure in England, and had fnnT n7Tl eSpei tS- d°ne more harm "»an good. The chairman stated that no Henry George could be deceived by any scheme of unemployment insurance. The cause of unemployment was staring everybody in the face, and in fact & had been correctly explained by Edward Gibbon Wakefield eighty years ago when he proposed that a fictitious price should be placed on land-in order to festnet unemployment and thereby compel andless men to seek employers Finally it was decided to defer coSt mecLgf th° mttCr t0 a