REPATRIATION PROBLEM

New Zealand Times, Volume XLII, Issue 9721, 25 July 1917, Page 2

REPATRIATION PROBLEM

“MOVE UP AND MAKE ROOM” TAXATION URGED TO BREAK UP BIG ESTATES. “Move up and make room,” was the burden of what Mr G. AV. Forbes, M.P. for Hurunui, had to say in the course of the debate on tbe Address-in-Roply yesterday with regard to the repatriation of soldiers. The first thing that they had to recognise, said Mr Forbes, .was that the hulk of tho land in the Dominion was already occupied. Only 3,085,000 acres were left in the hands of the Croivp; or. with tho land already opened for settlement, a total of 4,510,000 acres. Mr Reed: “Quite worthless, most of it.” • Mr Forbes: “That’s so.” But, on that account, ho urged, they had got to ask the men who w'ere occupying tho settled lands to move up and ihakq room for the soldiers. (Hear, hear.) WHAT THE MAORIS HAVE DONE. Mr Reed; “What about the Maori land?” Air Forbes: “We have got to ask the Maoris as well as the pakehas to move up.” (Hear, hear.) Mr T. Parata (Southern Maori District); “The Maoris have given 50,000 acres for the soldiers-” (Hear, hear.) Air Forbes; ‘ ‘They ate to be commended for their public spirit.” (Hear, hear.) In tho past twenty years, ho added, some 5500 people had been settled on some 1,697,000 acres, averaging 308 acres apiece, at a cost of £I3OO per settler. But the land would cost now double what it . actually had cost. They would have to ask the men holding.the freeholds to move up, and if they would not move up and sell their lands they had got to make them do So by applying the lever of taxation to provide land for the soldiers who had a perfect right to have land in this country. (Hear,, hear.) The .Census returns just published showed that the population of • the. North Island , had increased by 80,00 t), arid, that of the South Island had . increased by 4684 drily. In Canterbury .the population in the city of Christchurch and suburban districts had increased by; 5978; and in the seven .country electorates there was a decrease of- 671. That was how' land settlement iri Canterbury was going on. AGGREGATION GOING ON. They were told that subdivision was going on every day but from the decrease in population ho was quite satisfied that. the charges of aggregation werri truthful, and that considerable aggregation of moderate-sized farms was going on; (Hear, hear.) They could see from the way that population; was drifting that the-' land question called for some (very radical action from Parliament. (Hear, hear.) Although all their energies were taken up by the war, that matter of repatriation should be taken up, and it was high time that they applied some method for bringing about the subdivision of . big estates such as those which' held iip land settlement in Canterbury. (Hear, hear.) Tho member for Hawke’s Bay (Sir John Findlay) had -regretted that the Act of 1908, which provided for land..being taken .at .the owner’s valuation; had not -been made rise of in regard to soldier settlement. But in all past legislation—in that. Act and in the Soldier-Settlement Act; tooth e interests of the large land-hblders had been thoroughly safe-guarded. (Hear, hear.) ■ Air Nosworthy; “What about the brewers?” . Air Forbes’: “Never mind the brewers. ; You are always tliiriking of the. brewers;” (Laughter.) The Act qf 1908, he said, had provided for a secret valuation by the ‘ owner; and if a man wished to retain his land, he had simply to put his land up to .such'a-valua-tion that it could not be-touched. A member; “AVhat about taxation?” Mr Nosworthy: “AVhat .Government passed,-that Act?” Air Forbes: “I can’t get on with such interruptions.” The Speaker: .“I must ask hon. members not to interrupt so much.” _

Air. Forbes said that the State hail not- acquired,,a single acre compulsorily since that Act was put- on the Statute Book. It was.absolutely impossible, he declared, to carry on land settlement under a system like that. Under the . Soldier-Settlement:-': Act they had the old system brought in, but under that the difficulty was to get the’ evidence to prove the Government ’ value; though all settlements made' under the old Act had been a thorough success. What ho wanted to see‘was some system placed on the Statute Book that would enable them to take ' land compulsorily at reasonable prices. (Hear, hear.) THE APPEAL TO PATRIOTISAI. It Was said that they must appeal to the patriotic spirit of the landowners; hut they might appeal to the patriotic spirit of one man, and half a dozen others might have no patriotic spirit to appeal to. (Hear, hear, and laughter.) Why should they have a secret roll ? AVhy should not the value at which the land should be taken bo the Government valuation without any “plus 10 per cent.”? (Hear, hear.) GRADUATED TAX VERY SLIGHT. Hitherto the graduated land tax had been very slight indeed. The annual increase on all the estates affect-, ed had paid ten times over what they had had to pay in taxes. (Hear, hear.) But the matter would have to be dealt with in a very different spirit from that of the past. In the past they, had' to meet tho demands for ordinary settlement only; hut now they had the soldiers demanding their share of tho land they had fought for; aud the Government ' which failed to do its best to see that those men were offered the opportunities they were entitled to;would, not remain long on the Government benches. (Hear, hear.) • He urged the Government te bring down some drastic system of taxation, which would m some • way meet the desires of the people. (Hear, hear.) Some 5500 people had been settled under the Land for Settlement Act in about twenty years, but the 10,000 to 15,000 returned soldiers would have to be settled much more quickly than that. (Hear, hear.) The soldiers and their relatives and friends were not going to wait like that for the land. (Hear, hear.) There was a feeling of grim determination amongst the people that if the Government did not do its duty in regard to that matter there would he some considerable trouble. The members who had -heard what was said by the Second Division men could have no doubt about that, though there had

been among the men of the SecernDivision no sign of slackening witl regard to the winning of the war ant: no complaints as to the Ddminio: sending top many men to the front(Hear, hear.) ,