N.Z. LABOUR PARTY.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 20 April 1927, Page 5

N.Z. LABOUR PARTY.

ITS LAND POLICY. AMENDMENTS MADE. (BY TELEGRAPH—PRESS ASSOCIATION.) NAPIER, April 19. ■ The Labour Party’s land policy is outlined in a report of the special committee, which was adopted by the conference to-daj r as follows: — ‘‘ We recommend that * the present section of the platform dealing with land be deleted, and the following inserted, public ownership of land being the only ultimate remedy for present chaos and muddle. “The party’s platform provides (1) conservation of all State and publicly owned lands; (2) full recognition of owners’ interest in all land, including tenure, right of sale, transfer and bequest; (3) compensation for improvements on leasehold land; (1) a gradrn ated tax on unimproved land values; (5) acquisition (compulsory where necessary) of areas of land suitable for closer settlement and town planning; (0) tenure of acquired land to be under perpetual lease, conditional on accupaney and use, with periodic revaluations; (7) State provision of all facilities for the transfer of land; (8) maximum assistance to organisations of producers for co-operation in production, purchasing, shipping, marketing and credit; (9) extension of agricultural education including the provision of research facilities to find means of bringing the land to its fullest productive use; (10) the security of an adequate supply of fertilisers at the lowest possible cost to farmers; (11) the development and settlement of unoccupied land by the most advantageous methods; (12a) the adjustment of taxation on land in business areas to prevent exploitation, and to secure community values for the people; (12b) the application of the ‘betterment principle’ to land values which have been increased by public, works, or other community enterprise. “The land policy, and finance, and credit policy of the party are interwoven, and we recommend that the following clauses be included in the platform: (1) The establishment of a State bank to act as the central bank with, full control of the note issue; (2) the extension of the State Advances Office to provide all the credit necessary for (a) primary production, including loans to co-operative dairy companies, for the assistance of suppliers in the purchase of fertilisers, equipment and stock; (b) house building. ‘ ‘ The committee has unanimously recommended the above in the belief that the various sections are in line with the objective of the party, i.e., that public ownership of land is the only remedy for the present chaos and muddle, and supports the recommenda-* tions in the opinion that they are the best methods by which this objective can be attained'.’’

ELECTION OF OFFICERS. NAPIER, April 19. At the New Zealand Labour Party conference to-day the following officers were elected: —President, Mr. R. Semple: vice-president, 1 the Rev. J. K. Archer; secretary, Mr. W. Nash; central executive, Messrs. T. Brindle, Roberts, J. Thorn, J.Glover, W. Bromley. In addition the following are members of the provincial executive, having been elected by the respective districts prior, to the conference: —W. C. Barward (Helens ville), M. J. Savage (Auckland), D. W. Coleman (Gisborne), J. S. Mongomery (Mangere), W. J. Rogers (Wanganui), A. Spun(Lower Hutt), T. Parfitt (Westport), F. R. Cook (Christchurch), G. T. Koller (Timaru), F. Jones (Dunedin). Mr. H. E. Holland presented the report of the Parliamentary Labour Party, which was discussed and adopted unanimously. A social gathering is being held tonight. ,