THE LAND BILL

New Zealand Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 6088, 21 December 1906, Page 7

THE LAND BILL

INTERVIEW WITH MR McNAB. REPLIES TO CRITICISM. PBESB ASSOCIATION. CHRISTCHURCH, December 20. In tbo course of an interview to-day with , tho Hon. ,R. McNab, Minister for Lands, a ‘Tress” representative drew tho attention of the Minister to a statement of the president of the North Canterbury branch of the Farmers’ Union that “although the opponents of the. Land Bill had pointed out the injurious financial results that would follow the passing of tho mea' sure, yet no member of the Government bad yet dealt with that aspect.” ■ 1

MORTGAGES.’ , McNab said:'—“The financial quesi tioh you refer to is to my mind a plain one. You must remember that we propose to cut down bigs holdings, and at the same time prevent future large aggregations. If we simply do nothing but pass a clause saying that you shall not buy land above a certain value, and allow all, 1 mortgagees to become exempt from its’* provisions, what will happen will : be that every sale will commence with a, bogus mortgage and will end with a bogus transfer through a Registrar of the Supremo Court. ■ Tho purchaser will then claim to,hold the land as amortgagee who has purchased in place ' of an ordinary buyer. In order ta prevent these bogus transactions and cyasions of the act you must compel mortgagees to deal with their securE ties within a reasonable time of their falling into their hands. Take fon instance any large money lending institution. There is no objection ut alii to allowing such an institution perfect freedom in its transfers so long as it is only done, to, realise a security. If anyone can show some other way thorn the method suggested by which - this can bo done and at the same time prevent bogus transfers of property therd would bo. no objection.” ’ ~,,’v SPECULATORS. “We propose,” continued the Minister, “to allow every mortgagee to have two years not to realise his security, but to remain as the owner of it. . lit some of tlie mortgagees say'- they only want time, to ‘nurse’ a weak 'inert' l - gagor they can do, so to flu unlimited extent under the bill. It is only when!' they decide to take the ownership’ of f l , property out of the unfortunate borrower’s hands and vest it' in themselvcj to hold for a higher: price than tho ■ market Fill then allow them 1 to get,; : that they would feet any pinch under tho proposed legislation. Tho pinch they would - then feel; would, bo tliaii they must sell within two years after registering themselves as owners. The < farmers of the colony fail to realise- j that before that comes into operationtho land has passed out of their hands into tho hands of tho moneylenders. Companies that lend money, and while lending it assist their borrowers to tide* over difficult periods, are not affected bjr tWs proposed, legislation. ■ <Thb Gov* A; eminent money lending department Can carry on its business perfectly well under tho provisions of the bill. 1 It is when the moneylender becomes a land, speculator that he feels tho pinch. In, his capacity os a land speculator ho is now stirring up some of the land-own-ers of the colony: to induce them id oppose our land legislation, and the land-owners in many cases do not realise that before the conditions apply , they have lost all their interest in -the Land, and, thinking there is something in the contention, are acting accordingly.”

MISUNDERSTANDINGS. In answer to a question as to whaH clauses ef the bill ho thought wore not understood in their true bearing from the point of view of the Government, the Minister of Lands said;—“lt depends, I would say, upon the interests that are paramount in a particular locality. 'Whore you find the moneylending interest paramount there is this ' misapprehension about mortgagees; where you find the influence of largo land-ownem paramount the misapprehension which exists is that' the land proposals of the Government will affect all the small land-owner® and that ,the hill is ‘a blow at the freehold’; then in districts where the general political in* ; fluenoe is hostilo to the' Government they raise the cry against the ondowmenC—that it will not provide any more freeholds for the 'people; As we . know, harping on the freehold was tho only plank tho Opposition haveduid fot> many yeans. So you find the different clauses misunderstood or misrepresent--ed according to which interest preponderates in a ; district'.’’ ■' „ ' THE FREEHOLD. “The opponents of the bill,” said Mu - MoNab, "assert that it is- ‘a blow at: the freehold.’ My reply is that it is • not so. The only effect it will have i on tho freehold -will .be* this :v That! tho large freeholds will-have to bo cut up—still as freehold, not as leasehold,To that extent it reduces our pui'chases' of thoio freeholds, and of course under our purchases wo increase the leasehold area. So to, that extent our-'proposal® increase the freehold area in the colony The only other suggestion of a limitivtion of freehold is m dealing with the endowment. Not a single acre of tliaf' endowment is freehold. It can only b« suggested that it limits the freehold! in that it gives no more freehold. As against that wo have tho enormous area of leaso-in-pcrpetuity land to which wo offer 90 per cent, of freehold at the original value and in all cases of lease-in-perpetuity in the case of Ciown lands settlers can get the freehold if they allow every person to hav* an /'filial opportunity' by public com* petition.” CONVERSION OF TENURE. What clause do you refer to? '•:/ / “There is a tiauio in tbo hi!! under which! a man-maylelopt to allow his property toi : go up for-competition and tho freehold will bo disposed of under competition,. • That clause has often been overlooked-, The clause' I refer to is clause 6, sub* section 2. Under that clause the tenant may surrender his loase-in-perpctu-ity. and tiie value of tho improvement® will be ascertained by arbitration, and the fee simple of tho land will he offered by the board for value by publid competition, burdened with the value of improvements. By that means We are extending over the whole of tho lease-in-perpetuity- holdings of the Crown - lands the right of getting the freehold, only that everybody must have . a chance to acquire it. the tenant being safeguarded in regard to tho value of, h:s improvements. You can see from that what truth there in in tho suggestion that wo are ‘knocking the freehold! on the bead.’ Of course, his clause " does not apply to Lands for Settlement® Act lands, only to lease-in-perpetuity and Crown lands. T. have noticedat almost- every meeting I have been * at that men who prided themselves on knowledge of the provisions of the hill

oaiiui up lo mi; afterwards. .'mil admitted I'::, my n*i'*trks threw an entirely new I.IMITATION. V.'li'l- VOII consider ill., most lav..•■miiing action of tliu bill ••Tim clause J r.wi<iil-i- v, itli tin; most far-reaching (;ih(i i ..in jive- from a laud srt.l lo;i point of view is tile el a i iso known as ‘the £|.),o‘)ll elausi;. Tim rlauso which will have- the most farreaching elfei t Irom a financial point of view will be tin; endowment elnu.se. Its el feet as years go by will control to ,i very marked extent tins financial pr»is.i.is of future Governments in retail. *.i Ciistoins duties, ami in respect to .■!ii-t.ft taxation, because it will provide ,i gifat naiional revenue, so that we ran carry out winit Customs policy we piac-c, and we can carry out what laud lasaiiou W(. please. regardless of the <leA bed as lo bis future plans, IheMiiieer replied, "On my return to Wclb.i'Uou, denartnicnla.l business will ce- „||. over the Christmas holidays. ... i * next lour will pnibabiy be between '•WiiiugtoiL and Napier.”