REHABILITATION

Greymouth Evening Star, 17 May 1944, Page 3

REHABILITATION

BOARD APPOINTMENTS 1 WELLINGTON, May. 14. 1 “To enable the Rehabilitation j Board to give full effect to its policy 5 the Government has authorised. the ( Board to exceed its established limits , of assistance where special circum-h stances justify such action,” said the , Minister of Rehabilitation (Mr Skinner) to-day. “At the same time ■ authority has _ been given to strengthen the Board by the ap- j pointinent of representatives of the ; State Advances Corporation, the ( Lands and Survey Department, and j the Native Department Io the Board , as members.” The new Board now ] comprises the Minister as chairman, the Director of Rehabilitation j (Lieutenant-Colonel F. Baker), re- , presentalives of the two departments, and the corporation, the Secretary to j the Treasury, and Messrs S. W. Gas- j per, C. W. Batten, and H. L. Cullen. < To enable decisions to be expedit- , ed in individual cases, the Ministers continued, the Board had set up a number oi committees from Board i members, all under the general con- ; trol of the Board to deal with dif- : ferent types of assistance. The Rehabilitation Loans Committee would deal with all applications for loans. The- Lands Settlement Committee : was a joint committee of the Rehabilitation and Land Settlement Boards which would be responsible for the acquisition, development, and settlement of land. The Maori Rehabilitation Finance Committee would deal with applications for financial assistance from Maori former servicemen. The Trade Training Committee had, in addition to Board members, the secretary of the Labour Department, the Hon. R Eddy, M.L.C., Mr D. W. Macdonald (Manufacturers’ Federation), Mr W. E. Leadley (Disabled Servicemen’s Re-establishment League) and Mr R. G. Ridling (Wellington Technical College), and would deal with applications and plans for trade training. The Education Committee which also had as additional members Sir Thomas Hunter (University of New Zealand), Lieutenant-Colonel D. G. Ball (Army Education and Welfare Service), Dr. C. E. Beeby (Director ot Education), Wing Commander E. Caradus (R.N.Z.A.F. Educational , Service), and Mr S. Tl Barnett (Public Service Commissioner’s of--1 lice), would deal with all applica- ■ tions for educational assistance. , The Minister added that there was , also a standing executive committee ’ to deal with urgent matters, and con- ; sideration was being given to the . delegation of further powers to district executive bodies on which local 1 committees would be represented. ' but no finality had been reached on 1 that point. The appointment of committees would not alter the I operation of the rehabilitation 1 scheme, and former servicemen were ‘ advised to make their applications to district rehabilitation officers and 1 local committees. ,

NELSON PROTEST. NELSON, May 16. The Nelson Rehabilitation Committee has entered an emphatic protest against the preponderence of departmental representatives appointed to the Rehabilitation Board, as announced by the Minister of Rehabilitation (Mr. Skinner). The Committee strongly recommended holding immediately a Dominion conference of representatives of rehabilitation committees in order that committees might achieve uniformity in their decisions.