VALUATIONS OF LAND

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21328, 1 November 1932, Page 9

VALUATIONS OF LAND

QUESTION OF REDUCTION "A NOTE OF WARNING" When a remit dealing with land valuation came before the Dominion executive of the Farmers' Union in Wellington last week, the president, Mr. W. J. Poison, M.P., said he wished to utter a note of warning. The union was pressing for a reduction in land valuation, but it should bo remembered that lower values would mean greater difficulties in farm finance. "If you get your values down to £2O and £3O for first-class land, two-thirds of New Zealand will go back to prairie," Mr. Poison said. "It is not the valuation but the rate of interest we have to consider. If we drop our values too far I do not know ivhere we will g*t when we want finance, nor do I know how we are going to carry on with our second and third-class land." Mr. Poison stated that any lower values must remain for soriie time. It was a question whether the farmers should continue to press for reduced valuations or seek substantial reductions in interest charges. The matter was one of policy, and should be .defined. It was decided that the Government be asked to pass legislation to provide for a percentage reduction on last valuations.