NO FREE MEAT FROM BOARD

Taranaki Daily News, 23 December 1932, Page 7

NO FREE MEAT FROM BOARD

GRANT LAST Y'EAE NOT RENEWED. ; DIFFERENCE IN RELIEF ALLOCATIO No supply of free meat for Christmas . distribution among necessitous families is to be made by the Unemployment Board to the New Plymouth Relief As- . -sociation this year. Adjutant Green, of the Salvation Army, recently asked, Mr. S. G. Smith, M.P., to make representations for a grant of meat on similar ~, lines to the grant last year. Mr. Smiths first request to the Minister produced a reply regretting that nothing could be done in this direction. Further represen- • tations by. the member for the district suggested that the matter should be reconsidered. It is in answer to this that j the Unemployment Board has now Written regretting that it is unable to comply with the request. .-. “As you are aware,” says the letter, “meat has been granted in certain places J first by the Health Department and later to some extent by the Unemployment Board. This meat has’always been arranged for either in lieu of some other , concession or because, it was considered that there was special need In some i' locality. None of it is being given this ’ year as Christinas relief, and I would particularly draw your attention to the /•:-> difference between the basis of allocation at the present time and .in December of last year. • . ' , J “For instance, in New Plymouth last year' the weekly allocation W8 -bn an ' average of £4OO 15s each week in four : for 490 registered unemployed or 16s 4d per head per week. At the present time it is on an average of £624 7s each week in four for 576 registered unemployed, or 21s 8d per head per week. You : <jb will therefore readily see that the court- Gtry is rendering, through the Unemployment Board, very much greater assistance than it was . this time last year, and consequently additional assistance in the way of purchasing and supplying meat cannot be granted without : .yerjr seriously adding-to the'.cqst of the gen- : ’ ®ral relief ci uneinfilcjp»en4A -