SUDDEN BURDEN

Stratford Evening Post, Volume I, Issue 157, 13 June 1931, Page 5

SUDDEN BURDEN

FEEDING OF THOUSANDS NEW SYSTEM NEEDED UNIFIED CATERING PROPOSED WELLINGTON, This Day. The immediate effect ot'The cessation of the No. 5 scheme as from June 20 will apparently be to throw a tremendous burden on the Charitable Aid Board and other Institutions in Wellington. There are at present some 3,400 men employed under the scheme in Wellington, 1,700 being employed by the City Council, and the remainder by the Wellington College Board of Governors, the Wellington Education Board, the Show Association, and the Victoria College Board of Governors. A day or two ago there were about 600 men whom the bureau at Buckle Street was unable to place, probably in view of the pending but unannounced temporary cessation of the scheme through lack of funds. There is, therefore, a known total of 4,000 men who will be out of work when the scheme ceases to operate. It is understood that a modified form of the scheme is being considered by the Government under which single men are to be restricted to one and a half days' work, and married

men to two and three days' work, according to the number of dependants, but it seems as though, with the greatest expedition of which the machinery is capable in the ordinary way. such a scheme cannot, be put in working order until the House of Representatives has been sitting for some time. It may be a month, unless some special steps are taken, before pay-outs are again available. No doubt citizens would respond to an appeal, but it would take some time to make the appeal and collect the funds. In the meantime those under the scheme, and those who are now unemployed in addition, will have no recourse but to apply for charitable aid.The Charitable. Aid Department of the Jiospital is to-day dealing with average ,df 175 destitute people daily, and its staff and re' sources are' being severely taxed to carry on this work satisfactorily? It vyould be quite impossible for the D'ep'strtrnflint to deal with 4,000 worlfless rfren and their/de"pe.ndants," ,„ ' ' •/' •Commissariat Problem . "

The opinion was. expressed by nibre than 011/3 busiHss,&ah that something more general an/Kof a bigger nature should be done/to give sustenance to the .unemployed in this'-acute crisis. It. was out that the first need and that large kitchens under >iph&'" control, • buying and dis-tributii-g/n bulk, could do so with a lower expenditure than many different societies and organisations, excellent .though the work is that these are doing. The time had come, in the opinion, of one of these gentlemen, when the small proportion of undeserving cases could partake of the "general provtslOß-of-' food •■ without -in* . creasing the cost appreciably, and that was one of his reasons for advocating a 'ipOTfliSi of effort in this'direa'-! tion r .as it.-would .cut;., out vexations.. . delays. In fact, he considered that the trifling loss in feeding the "professional" unemployed would be' more than counter-balanced by the freedom of decent people from the long waits and innumerable questions they at present had to put up with.

IN CHRISTCHURCH MAYOR MUCH CONCERNED CHRISTCHURCH, June 12. The suspension of the No. 5 relief scheme may have a vital effect on the plan of the Christchurch City Council to raise a loan for relief work on city streets, for the council scheme was based on the assumption that a subsidy would be received from the Unemployment Board. The Mayor, Mr. D. G. Sullivan, M.P., said that if the scheme was to be suspended the council would not be able to go on with its plan to raise a loan. However, assuming that the council approved of the scheme, the necessary formalities would be gone on with. "It would be incredible to imagine that the Government would allow the situation to continue for any length of time, without some action being taken to meet it," added Mr. Sullivan. He said that the subsidies to hospital boards had been reduced on the assumption that the No. 5 scheme would relieve the calls on the boards, and if the No. 5 scheme, or something to take its place, was not put into operation, there would be a very heavy burden on these boards.

lu some way or another the Government must meet the situation, and asssitance must be Riven to the hospital boards ami the unemployed. The only alternative was the partial starvation of the people affected. Mr. Sullivan said that he was not greatly surprised at the decision, although he was greatly concerned about it, for when he interviewed the Unemployment Board .on Wednesday on matters in connection with tincity, he was told by the chairman of the hoard that the board was working on an allocation made from week to week by the Finance Minister, and the board itself did not know from week to week how long the scheme would endure. Mr. Sullivan concluded by saying that he felt certain that Parlament would Insist on aninfitMng