MORTGAGE CORPORATION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22711, 25 October 1935, Page 10

MORTGAGE CORPORATION

AMENDING LEGISLATION “A TANGLED SKEIN” CRITICISM BY MR SAVAGE (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, October 24. Criticism of the action of the Government in setting up the Mortgage Corporation to fulfil a service that could well have been carried out by the State lending departments was expressed by the Loader of the Opposition, Mr M. J. Savage, when the Mortgage Corporation of New Zealand Amendment Bill was under consideration in the House of Representatives to-day. “All this tangled skein,” said Mr Savage, referring to the amendments, “ comes about as the result of trying to turn the State lending departments into a semi-private institution. I suppose most of the amendments are necessary, but what is there in the Mortgage Corporation Act .that could not have been carried out by the State Advances Department? It appears that whatever the liabilities are they belong to the Crown, and that whatever assets there are will belong to the corporation. We have not got rid of any of the liabilities there were when the State Advances Department was operating, and if any amendment were necessary surely it could have been brought about by a revision of the existing system.” Mr Downie Stewart warned the Minister of Finance, Mr J. G. Coates, who was in charge of the Bill, to he on his guard against the danger of the corporation building up a system of law for itself in much the same way as the Public Trustee had done until the courts found that when matters concerning the Public Trustee were being considered the ordinary law had to be laid aside. The Minister was naturally called on to see that the corporation had power to make effective the realisation of its securities, but he also acted for the taxpayer, who naturally wanted to see the best possible results obtained. Under the amendment the taxpayer or the Crown practically had to agree to any expenditure the corporation incurred. The corporation had all the powers, but none of the risk. There must be some stage where the risk passed from the Crown to the corporation, but it appeared from the Bill that whatever the corporation did, even if it a mess of its business, the risk was still with the Crown. Mr Stewart pointed out also that the Bill gave the corporation power to extend a mortgage even if the mortgagor wished to pay it off, and stated that any action of that kind should be taken only with the consent of the mortgagor. The Minister, replying, said the point raised by Mr Downie Stewart was an important one and would be kept in mind. Most of the amendments were essential to smooth working and adjustment as between the State Advances Department and the Moi tgage Corporation. Referring to the payment of rates on properties taken over by the corporatioin Mr Coates said there was a little gleam of hope coming. Labour members: When? _ Mr Coates: In the Finance Bill. The Bill was put through all its stages and passed. ... . A clause in the Bill gives to moit"agors and mortgagees the right _ of appeal to the Court of Review against the decisions of the Adjustment Commissions in respect to the distribution of a mortgagor’s income during the Budgetary period provided under the original Act. The decision of the couit in "this respect is to be final.