LABOUR PARTY’S POLICY

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 29 April 1927, Page 2

LABOUR PARTY’S POLICY

LAND SETTLEMENT PROBLEM. DAIRY PRODUCE CONTROL. MR H. E. HOLLAND’S ADDRESS. Tlie proposals of the New Zealand Labour Party with reference to .the land, problem in New Zealand andi its attitude on the question of dairy control were dealt with by the leader of the party, Mr H. E. Holland, M.P., in an address delivered before an Audience of approximately 350 town and' district residents who assembled in the Winter Show Hall, Hawera, last evening. The Mayor (Mr E. A. Pacey) presided. * Opening his remarks with reference to the land! question in New Zealand:, Air Holland said that as New Zealand was essentially a primary producing country it went without saying that the best land policy would be one to place the largest possible number of farmers on the land and on the smallest possible areas. The Dominion area comprised approximately sixtysix and two-third million acres, fortythree and) a half millions of which were classed as rural or occupied land. These occupied lands were held by 85,734 people—a small number in proportion to the population of nearly one and a half millions. The position assumed an even more serious aspect when it was considered that of the 85,734 holders 78,756 held between them less than 14,000,000. acres, while the remaining 6978 held l nearly 30,000.000 acres. This meant that 8 per cent of the land holders held 69 per cent of the total occupied lands, while 92 pea- cent of holders had only 31 per cent- of the land. AGGREGATION PROBLEM. The land statistics of the country gave unmistakable evidence of land aggregation. Fifty-six landholders had areas "averaging' more than 81,000 acres, 109 bad averages of more than 30,000 acres, 294 had' averages of more than 14,000, and 568 had averages of more than 7000 acres. To deal with this undesirable position means must be devised to break up the land into closer settlement, which meant increased production and improved. f distribution of the * land’s products. - The proposal of the Labour Party was to impose a more steeply graduated land tax, which would have die effect of compelling the large holders to part with portions of their land md have those portions put into effective use. If necessary the Labour Party would resort to compulsory acquisition of such lands, the holders leing compensated according to its producing value. “Land aggregation s one of the worst evils jvhioh could , risit any country,” declared the speaker, ‘“and despite the promises riven by the present Government con:erning what it intended 1 doing for the armer.y of the Dominion, it has not loa.lt effectively with this question.” The Labour Party insisted that pubicly owned lands should be eon;eived, but under the party proposals i, person surrendering a lease would lave the legal right to claim the tssessahle value of improvements efected by him.

INCREASING AIORTGAGES. This did not pbtain under the mortgage system, which presented a kindred evil. At the end of March, 1926, tire capital valuation of the Dominion , lands'—that was the unimproved value , plus the value of improvements —was £603,250,000, this representing an in- j crease of approximately 77 per cent , since 1911-12. Mortgages held at the ( end of March last year totalled approximately £282,733,000 —nearly half t the canital value of the toal Dominion ( area, but whereas the capital value * since 1911-12 had increased by. 77 pea- ‘ cent, the mortgage bill had 1 risen by j 188 per cent. This illustrated that the present system of settlement had t not given farmers the promised l . free- K hold, but had imposed a Dominionwide mortgage hold. Prior to the last session, Parliament had sent a commission abroad to investigate the systems of rural credits in other countries. The commission had l reported that the State Advances Department could' do all that was . necessary if it was given the power to ; go on to the financial market for the , purpose of extending the advances J system, and though that power had : been given the speaker contended that nothing effective had resulted. STATE BANKING. The financing of .agricultural and other - business ventures was of paramount importance to the welfare of any country, and in order that this could be arranged under the best possible terms the Labour Party proposed to set up ia State Bank, which would have the sole right of note issue and take the present financial power from the associated banks. A publiclyowned banking institution could make finance available on the cheapest possible terms, and whatever trading benefits were achieved' would assist the people as a whole. The interest bill at 6i per cent on mortgages last year amounted to approximately £17*,500.000, and for the current year it would be approximately £18,250,000, more than half of which had to be found by the small fanner with mortgages of £SOOO or under. Mr Holland quoted figures to show that under the present banking system and since the accession to office of the present Government in 1911- the amount borrowed on mortgage at ai low rate of interest had 1 declined and the amounts borrowed, at higher rates had increased. In 1911-12 the interest on mortgages at 4\ pot* cent had been (in round figures) £2,400.000, in 1912-13 it had been £l,040,000, and in 1925-26 it had been £58,000. At 5 per cent it had been . £9.060,000 in. 1911-12; £6,700,000 in 1912- ; and £3,100,000 in 1925-26. i At 6 per cent it had been £1,950,000 in 1911-12; £5,190.000 in 1912-13; and £12.800,000 in 1925-26. ! Another big problem was involved : in the cost of transfers. The .speaker’s ' party proposed that the transfer work l should be carried out at cost price by the Lands Office. s, THE VOTE FOR COMPULSION, t “There had been intense dissatisfacfc Itioni concerning the previous system . of marketing the dairy produce of the Dominion, and the demand for control

cam© from: the farmers themselves,” said! Mr Holland with reference to this question. A vote had been taken in June, 1923, round the compulsory clauses of the Bill, and' 71 per cent of those who voted had been in favour of the compulsory clauses. When the Bill originally came before the House the Labour Party made certain reservations, but supported l its general principle because it embodied the idea of co-operation. As manufacture of the dairy produce was carried 1 out on the co-operative plan, it was logical to presume that the principle could be extended to marketing. Much objection bad been raised to price-fixing, but there was no calling in the world in which iirice-fixing did not operate. The real question to be decided l was who should fix the .price, the primary producers or the speculators. Proceeding, Mr Holland dealt at length with the history of the Dairy Produce Board, the propaganda directed against it by the London marketing interests, and the part played by the Government when, in January of this year, the boawl asked permission to retire the then Government nominee on the London agency.

“The Labour Party believes in cooperative effort,” he continued. “The day of individual endeavour has gone, and no one can live independent of hi s fel low-m en. ” FOOD PURCHASE COUNCIL. The farmers must be opposed to the Tooley Street interests, for no one could uphold the system of gambling in the necessities of life which had had been permitted under the system of marketing the Dominion produce. Naturally the Tooley Street merchants would fight against control and the system of co-operative marketing, which would deprive them of the opportunity for exploitation. After traversing the possibilities of the Produce Board working with the Cooperative Marketing Associations of Great Britain, Mr Holland said the Labour. Party’s principal proposal to deal with the postiiop was that the British Government should set up _a Food Purchasing Council, which', in handling all food supplies, could contract with the Daily Produce Board to purchase supplies over stipulated periods. Such. a. proposal bad previously been made by Mr R. J. dynes, and the Labour Party was confident that if it was adopted; the result would be the realisation of better prices to the producer as well 1 as making the produce; available on more favourable terms to the consumer. The scheme would also be the most effective which oorild bp devised for bringing into operation the terms of the slogan of British preference for British goods. Mr Holland stressed, in concluding the subject that the marketing of New Zealand produce must be . conducted 1 on lines which would eliminate those; who at present are given the opportunity for speculation. No questions were asked on 'the conclusion' of Mr Holland’s address, and a vote of thanks was carried by acclamation.