CROWN LEASES

Grey River Argus, 18 August 1944, Page 8

CROWN LEASES

SETTLEMENT OF RETURNED MEN. P.A. AUCKLAND, August 17. An important step to give exservicemen an. opportunity to obtain Crown leases under the North Auckland Land Board was taken at a meeting of the Board yesterday. Mr. L. J. Foff, Crown Land Commissioner, stated, after the meeting that the Board was anxious to bring the administration of Crown leases into line with the operation of the Servicemen’s Settlement and Land Sales Act. By Section 51 of the Act the Minister is given power to take land wherever such is suitable for the settlement of discharged servicemen, but Crown leases are exempt from the provisions of the Act. Mr. Poff sa'id that his Board felt that the Crown leases should be made available to the same extent as freehold land. The Board, therefore, had passed a resolution that, when application for the Land Board’s consent to the transfer of a lease or license of rural land is lodged, there should also be lodged that the. lessee or licensee has previously given at least one month’s notice in writing to the nearest Rehabilitation Committee, offering to sell his interest in the property to any returned serviceman on the same terms and conditions as are contained in the transaction for which application is being made for the Board’s consent, and that'such Committee has advised the lessee or licensee that there is no serviceman eligible or willing to accept the offer. Servicemen, concluded Mr. Poff, would, therefore, get the first opportunity to take over a Crown lease before it was publicly offered for transfer. He considered this procedure would probably be adopted by various Land Boards throughout New Zealand.