NATIVE RESERVES AMENDMENT BILL

Grey River Argus, 23 November 1910, Page 6

NATIVE RESERVES AMENDMENT BILL-

AS LAID BEFORE PARLIAMENT

RENEWED LEASES TO BF. ON BASIS OF FIVE PER CENT PER ANNUM ON UNIMPROVED VALUE.

tOur Correspondent). ' • WELLINGTON, Nuv 22; The Westland and Nelson Native Reserves Amendment Bill was circulated in. the House of Representatives to-night. .

It provides that where, on the •exrviration of a lease granted under the principal Act, the value of the land, for the -purpose of determining the amount of rent to be paid on renewal or the value of' improvements (to which the lessee is entitled) are not agreed upon between the lessee and

■ihe Public Trustee, such values shall be taken to -be those on 'the distric, valuation roll prepared under the valuation of the Land Act, 1908, and in force when the lease expires, and -the -rent payable on the renewed lease shall be five pounds per centum pei annum on the unimproved value ol the land included in the lease. SCHOOL AND CHURCH LEASES. The section relating to School and Church lands, reads : "Whereas c&> -tain allotments of land subject to thtf principal Act are now occupied for religious or" educational purposes (not for gain) under leases granted by the Public Trustee, at a peppercorn -rent, be.it therefore enacted as follows: — (a). "Ever)' such lease is hereby validated, but shall be determined and be deemed .to be cancelled on the expiration of two years after the cominginto operation of this Act. i(b). "At any itime prior to such cancellation the lessee may purchase the fee simple) of the land, at such price as is agreed on between the lessee and « the Public Trustee, being in no case less than the unimproved value of land as shown on i;he aforesaid valuation roll at the time of the purchase, provided that the right of purchase hereby conferred shall not be exercised unless the Public Trustee is -satisfied- ihat the land, when "purchased, will continue to be used for religious or educational purposes, and not for gai i. (c). "The purchase . nronev shall be invested by the Public Trustee in the common fund of the Public Trust Office and the income 'thereof shall be paid by him to the persons who would have been entitled to the -rent if the allotments -(instead of being sold) had been leased at substantial Tents."' - GREYMOUTH SECTION. ■ Noth withstanding anything contained in the Native Reserves Ao':. of 1882. the Westland and Nelson (Native Reserves Act, 1887, or any other Act, the Public Trustee at any time within two years from the passing of this Act may with the precedent consent, (to be ascertained as hereinafter D-rovided) of the beneficial owners, sell the fee simple of all that ua-rcel-of land containing five hundred acres more or less, in the county of Grey, known as Gre3 r mouth Native Reserve (hereinafter referred to as the said •reserve), subject to •the conditions con- . tamed in this and the 'next four succeeding sections, MODE OF PROCEDURE. For the purpose of ascertaining" i the consent of the beneficial owners, j the following provisions shall .apply: (a). The Public Trustee shall, within three months after the passing of this Act, apply to the -Native Land Court to. determine -the succession to the interest of any deceased beneficial owners of -the said 'reserve, and to appoint trustees (other than the Public Trustee) in respect of beneficial owners under disability. The Chief Judge of the Native Land Court shall thereupon appoint a special sitting of the Court to heor and determine such applications. (c). On the completion of the determination .by die Court of such applications, and within one year after ■the passing of thi s Act, the Public Trustee shall summon a meeting- of the beneficial owners, for -the purpose of considering a resolution that the Public Trustee be authorised to sell the said reserve subject tcfthe provisions of "this Act. (d). The meeting shall be held at such time, and place, as the Public Trustee appoints, and shall be summoned in the manner prescribed by ' the regulations. (c). The meeting, if duly summoned in the prescribed ' manner, and the resolution passed thereat, shall I not be invalidated by the circumstance that any beneficial owner has not in fact received notice of the holding of that meeting. , | (f). The procedure of the meeting* shall, save so far as is determined by this Act, be determined 'by. the regulations. i(g). A beneficial owner may at tend and vote at the meeting either personally or (so far as, and in such manner as, the regulations permit or •require) by a proxy appointed by him in writing. (h). The term, "beneficial owner," shall, for die purposes of this section, ■include the Trustee of an owner under disability and such trustee may attend, vote and act at the meeting, •either personnally or by proxy, in nhe same manner and on the same conditions as if he was a beneficial owner. (i ). The successor of a deceased beneficial owner shall not be entitled to attend or vote at any such meeting, until, and unless a succession order has been made in his favour. (j ). At the meeting tfiree-fourths of the beneficial owners whose interests in the said reserve together amount 'to not less than 'three-fourths, of the value of the beneficial freehold interests in. the said reserve, shall constitute a quorum. (k). The Public Trustee, or some person appointed by the. Public Trustee for the purpose shall be present at the meeting, and shall keep a re-, cord of the proceedings, thereof and his certificate in writing that a quorum is, Or is not present, shall be conclusive evidence of 'the fact; .( 1). The resolution shall be deemed to be carried if the owner s who vote in favour of the resolution own a larger aggregate share of the land affected thereby, than the owners who do not' vote in favour of the resolution. .'■■-■ ■•■-■■ i(mj. 'The resolution shall be reduced to writing, and shall be authentic- • ated in the manner prescribed, by the regulations. - (n)*. An owner, trustee, or proxy,, who voted against the resolution may, if he so desires sign a memorial of ■dissent in the presence of the Public Trustee, or the person appointed by the Public Tirustee to attend the meeting 1 . (o). So soon as practicable after the holding of the meeting the Public Trustee or his appointee, shall in: writing, under his hand, report the 'result of such meeting to the Governor, and shall attach to such report a statement, under his hand, of the proceed-

ing of the meeting together with the resolution and any memoiral of dissent. .

(p). If the affirmative, then, on its being" reported to the Governor the Governor may take the same into consideration, having regard to the public interests, and to the interest s of ,the beneficial owners and may, by Order-in-Council, either confirm or disallow the resolution.

(q). An the confirmotion of the resolution as aforesaid, it shall, wlien notified in the Gazette and Kahiti, be deemed to be the consent of the beneficial owners for the purpose of subsection one of this section.

(r). The cost and expenses of, and incidental to, the meeting, shall> be paid by the Public Trustee out of the rents and profits of the said reserve The. Governor ! ma.y by Order-in-Goun-cil gazetted, make, vary, or revoke, such regulations as he deems necessary for the purposes of .this section.

The purchase money for the sale of the said Greymouth reserve shall be such sum as may be agreed upon by the Public Trustee and the purchasers, hut shall be not less than the unimproved value thereof, as shown on the valuation roll of the district of Grey in force at the date of" the confirmation of the aforesaid resolution.