ASSISTING EX-SOLDIERS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19419, 30 August 1926, Page 10

ASSISTING EX-SOLDIERS

THIRTY-OtiE MILLIONS USED. LAND' SETTLEMENT" FINANCE. TOTAL COST OF PENSIONS. [BY TELEGRAPH. OWN CORRESPONDENT. ] WELLINGTON. Saturday. A review of what the Government had done for returned soldiers was given by the Prime Minister, Mr. Coates, at ft function given in his honour by the Returned Soldiers' Association last evening.

Up to March 31; 1926, he said, £31,000,000 had been utilised in soldier settlement and repatriation activities. Of the capital invested £13,500,000 was transferred from the ordinary revenue account, being portion of the accumulated surplus; £6,577,086 was raised under the Discharged Soldiers' Settlement Act, and the Discharged Soldiers' Settlement Loans Act of 1915 and 1920 respectively, and £5.736,050 by the sale of debentures and inscribed stock on land for settlements account for the purchase of land, etc.

Large reductions had been mado by the Revaluation Board on soldiers settlements. There had- been a reduction in : capital value of leaseholds of £1,754,207, a reduction in Crown mortgages of £726,601, making a total reduction of £2,480,808. By the efforts of the board mortgages and debts of various descriptions owing by soldier settlers to private persons and amounting to £142,378 were reduced to £107,801. In addition, mortgages to private persons of an original ' value of £50,700 were purchased for £26,296, and the discount of £24,404 thus obtained credited to the settlers.

Up to March 31, the board had granted remissions of instalment, interest and rent totalling £129,413. To the same date, postponement of rent, principal and instalment interest, totalling £472,683, had been granted. . Postponements totalling £117,898 and remissions totalling £101,099 had been granted by land boards on the recommendation of the Dominion Revaluation Board. Reductions totalling £49,241 had been made in current accounts, and the original value of buildings on purchased .estates had been reduced by £15,188. The amount involved in the repatriation of soldiers was £31,342,835, of which £5,736,050 had gone for the purchase of estates for subdivision, and £8,966,773 in advances to assist soldiers to purchase private lands.The total payments in war pensions to March 31, 1926, was £12,569,640. The total claims lodged were 41,310 from soldiers, and 20,572 from dependants. The number of pensions granted was 54,367. At March 31; 1926; there were 20,716 pensioners, with • 3420 children.- The annual value of the pehsions-was £1,122,843, and the average pehsion'£s4.- The number o£ returned soldiers who ■ had been assisted under the Repatriation Act was 84,000, involving £31,342;000. The percentage of men who had been unable to repay advances was infinitesimal.