UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 16 June 1930, Page 2

UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF

EFFECT OF SUBSIDIES STATEMENT BY A LABOUR MEMBER The following statement was made last week by Mr J. McCombs, M.P., concerning the Government's new unemployment relief subsidy: — "I am very pleased to see the announcement of the Prime Minister that the Government is prepared to increase its subsidy to local bodies for relief of unemployment. The heads of the Treasury Department, however, must realise that the Government's new offer will probably not involve the Treasury in a greatly increased expenditure. A£2 for £1 subsidy sounds twice as good as a £1 for £1 subsidy, but in reality it is only one-third better. Under a £1 for £l' subsidy the Government finds 10s out of every xil spent on labour, whereas on a £2 for £1 subsidy the Government finds 13s 4d. The proposed new subsidy is for wages only, and the local body, in addition to its third share of the wages, has to find the full cost of the materials. "The Government's offer should, however, stimulate local bodies to find work for the married men near their homes. The old offer which has- been in existence for years and which still stands, of £1 for £l on subscriptions, covers the' full cost of the work, provided there is 60 per cent, expended on wages. This subsidy on public subscription is still the proposition and should encourage the Unemploynvent Committee to go on. with-their work. Under the £1 for £1 subsidy on total cost, on a £IO,OOO expenditure, the Government would find £SOOO, whereas, under the new proposal of £2 for £1 on wages only—6o per cent, being expended on wages—the Government would find only £4OOO. Under the new offer, taking the total expenditure, the local bodies may have to find 30s for every £1 found by the Government. The new offer is, however, very much better than a previous offer of £1 for £1 on wages, under which the Christchurch Citv Council received onlv £BOOO from the Government out of a total expenditure of £28,000 on unemployment relief. . "Local bodies should be reminded that unless the time is extended, they have only up till 30th June, 1930, m which they mav borrow for relief of unemployment without a poll, which is a very important consideration seeing that a poll might cost up to £750."