GENEROUS PUBLIC

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26783, 28 May 1948, Page 5

GENEROUS PUBLIC

WAR FUNDS TOTAL £4,500,000 BOARD OPPOSED TO LOANS Ip.A. WELLINGTON, May 27. . I The generosity of the New Zealand [public' to its service personnel during [the recent war exceeded that of any |other country, according to a report prom the newly constituted Patriotic [Fund Board, which held its first meeting in Wellington recently. | The sum handled by patriotic [organisations' during the war was about £11,000,000. which is equivalent to £6 a head from every .man, woman and child, states the report. The unexpended balance now held in credit by the board amounts to £ 1,358,632, while provincial patriotic councils hold £1,630.000. In addition to this, there is a surplus of about £900,000 held by the Canteen Board and £IBO,OOO in the Middle East Club account. With the possibility of a distribution of N.A.A.F.I. funds and special bequests, it is estimated that the total amount of' all funds remaining from the recent war will be £4,500,000. With the new Canteen Fund Board and provincial patriotic councils, the Patriotic Fund Board is charged with the responsibility of administering these funds for the benefit of exservicemen of the Second World War and their dependents. The board supported the principle that assistance should be made available on the sole consideration of the applicant's need, irrespective of where and in what status he served. It is to be the aim not merely to provide temporary relief when it is required, but to provide sufficient assistance for an ex-service-man to re-establish himself permanently. The board states that it does not wish to saddle with additional financial commitments those who have received rehabilitation loans. It is opposed to the loan principle as far as patriotic funds are concerned, and in cases where advances are justified prefers to make them as absolute grants.