BIG SUM NEEDED TO AID WORKLESS

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 142, 17 June 1931, Page 7

BIG SUM NEEDED TO AID WORKLESS

MEMBER OF BOARD SAYS PARLIAMENT MUST ACT. (Special to the “ Star.”) AUCKLAND, June 17. The opinion that £1,000,000 is the lowest additional financial provision that Parliament in its coming session should be asked to make for unemployment relief was expressed by Mr O. M’Brine, one of the Auckland members of the U nemploymen L Board, when addressing a mass meeting of local unemployed. All told, there were 51,000 unemployed fully accounted for and the board to date had either spent or had commitments which would absorb a ' total of £836,000, said Mr M’Brine. The revenue from the first quarter’s levy was £159,000, and from the second quarter £152,000. Some had paid the levy for both terms and from the third quarter, to the end of the present week, the estimated revenue was £IIO,OOO. That made a total of £421,000 without Government subsidy. Under the board’s first four schemes, £167,540 had been spent and under the No. 5 scheme, which had relieved 34,000 men, the expenditure had been £40,000 a week. In his opinion, the scale of relief under the No. 5 scheme was insufficient. RETURNED SOLDIERS IN ACUTE DISTRESS. CAMP WITH FREE FOOD SUGGESTED BY SPEAKER. Per Press Association. AUCKLAND, June 17. “ The men who did not go to the war and took the jobs of those who did are still in those jobs and they are the only men who seem to be prospering to-dav,” said Colonel Dawson when addressing the Hon W. A. Veitch as a member of a returned soldiers’ deputation in reference to the existence of acute distress amongst men who fought in the war. General Richardson, who headed the deputation, declared &iat returned men out of work would have been entirely submerged but for the No. 5 scheme. There were many who could not benefit by the scheme owing to age or war disabilities, and their cases required special attention. He urged the Minister to use his influence to have land made available for them. Colonel Dawson recalled the promises made to soldiers when they enlisted. He suggested that Narrow Neck Camp be used to accommodate 200 single men, the Government to provide rations and several non-commissioned officers who could easily N be spared. Returned men were slipping faster than others into despondency, and they felt that nobody cared for them. The Minister, replying, said that exsoldiers had as much claim on the people to-day as when they enlisted. DOUBT ABOUT QUALITY OF DONATED PRODUCE. (Special to the “ Star.”) WANGANUI, June 17. The provincial executive of the Wanganui Farmer’s’ Union decided to-day to organise a drive of ‘stock and produce in the Wanganui district for distribution among the needy. Mr R. Howie said he hoped that farmers would send in stuff fit for human consumption and that they were not going to give a number of old ctills not fit. to feed dogs with. He had been “given the wheeze ” that some of the meat held in store by the Government for free distribution was not up to the mark. UNEMPLOYED WHO LEFT COUNTRY WORK. (Special to the “ Star.”) AUCKLAND, June 17. When speaking on unemployment to a deputation in Wellington yesterday, the Minister of Labour, the Hon S. G. Smith, said that recently 1378 men were sent out to relief works in Auckland province, and 990 of them returned to town shortly after. At Otahuhu in a by-election address bn May 25 and next morning to a deputation of unemployed, the Minister of Labour said that for the period November 29 to May 25, 1838 men had been placed by the Public Works Department on relief works, and 900 had subsequently left of their own accord. He was unable to give reasons why they had not remained. Jl is presumed, however, that the No. 5 scheme caused a good many to return to the cities. Married men, who have several children, and are assured of four days’ work weekly and living at home, are not likely to remain in country employment. (A statement made by the Minister of Labour appears on page 4.)