STATE ADVANCES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 8 August 1928, Page 5

STATE ADVANCES

AND DISCHARGED SOLDIERS’ i SETTLEMENTS

THE FINANCIAL POSITION (By Telegraph) (From “The Mail’s” Parliamentary Reporter). WELLINGTON, 7th August. During his Financial Statement to the House of Representatives to-night the Minister of Finance (the Hon. W. Downie Stewart) dealt with the work of the State Advances' Office as follows “This office continued to render substantial assistance to those in need of capital, including £751,900 under the Rural Advances Act, / the Department paid over loans amounting to £2,793,030 during the year. .. . “In. the last five years the Department has paid over to 26,312 applicants loans amounting in the aggregate to the gigantic sum of ‘ £26,692,969., Of this total £11,849,676' has been lent for the erection and purchase—mostly the former—of dwellings. ■ V, “In spite of the huge sums that have been, advanced, the pressure- on the Office still continues, and in many cases applicants have to wait some time before their applications can be dealt with. Though the Department pays its way and the borrowed capital is no burden on the taxpayer, we cannot go on adding unlimited millions to the public debt without damaging our national credit. Further, in my opinion, it is certainly not in the interests of the countiy that the State should become the only money-lender in the Dominion. “Rural Advances bonds for long term mortgages to the amount of £543,300 were sold last’ financial year. Loans paid over to farmer borrowers amounted to £751,900, the; additiorial funds havinc been provided' by-.means of tern-, pcn’ary transfers fforil tfie other branches; of the .State Advances Office, which had been provided with additional funds specially for this purpose. ' A

SOLDIERS’ SETTLEMENT “As honourable 1 members are aware, large numbers of revaluations and wrftmgs-off of accumulated revenue debts to the Crown have been made .in the last few years in connection with the discharged soldiers settlement scheme. -The writing-down of capital tp its economic price-level and the wip-ing-off o-f arrears of’interest has estab fished the settlers- on a sounder footing, and in most .gases they arc now in a position to make some headway. Last year most of the settlers were able to meet their obligations, and from the financial point of view the year was the best one to date. -■ , , “The extensive capital reductions and the remission of arrears of interest etc., granted to settlers had, of necessity to be written Off. in the various public accounts concerned. , Power to make the necessary adjustment of account was contained in the. Finance Act, 1927Revaluation Board ed in the aggregate to £3,424,584, while accumulated : revenue losses . and other items to be written off-brought the total up to £5,164,636. These losses have been written off as far as possible against revenue items. \ “In particular, liabilities to the Consolidated Fund for interest, etc., to the amount of £1,886,756 wereeancclled, £1,600,000 was written off the £13,0w,000 advance from the Consolidated Fund now forming part of the Puhhc Debt Redemption Fund: In addition, the | an d for .Settlements Discharged Soldiers sSuement Accent »aj re .eved from payment of interest on £I,OII;UUU of loan" capital, while the balance of £666,880 was written off against reserves. With the exception of the last-mentioned item the losses have thus been borne by the Consolidated Fund.” .