Rehabilitating N.Z.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20278, 12 April 1934, Page 8

Rehabilitating N.Z .

Two Schemes

Evidence for Monetary

Committee .

Per Press Association. WELLINGTON, April 12. 'J'HE COMMONWEALTH LAND PARTY of New Zealand placed before the Parliamentary Monetary Committee yesterday a plan for restoring the land to the people, the payment of full economic rent or rental value of land, minus all improvements, and the immediate abolition of income and company tax, the unemployment charge and wage tax and certain other taxes. The objects advocated by the party were outlined by the organiser, Mr E. W. Nicolaus. Mr Nicolaus dealt with the weakness of the present system at length. Referring to the new scheme, he said that on a day appointed the land should be proclaimed by Parliament to be restored to the people, and from that day the full economic rent or rental value of the land, minus all improvements, should be paid to the Government in four equal instalments yearly.

Taxes to be abolished immediately were the income and company tax, unemployment and wage tax, stamp and transfer duties, sales and travel tax and Customs taxation on all commodities necessary for the feeding, clothing and housing of the people and all materials and goods, machinery and means of transport. Further proposals were that the railways and other social services should be freed from the fictitious value attached to them and re-valued in their present earning capacity, all pensions to be based on the average earnings of labour after adjustment; a moratorium on all mortgages and overdrafts for a period of three months; all wage agreements to be terminated and wages to be allowed to find their true level; all unnecessary Government departments to be shut down within three months; city and county revenues to be based on new, unimproved values and a moratorium to be given for one year on all loans where it is considered necessary. Mr Nicolaus claimed that the first results of this change would be an increase in trade and a decrease in unemployment, and later an increase in shipping and in the export and import of goods. An increase in the growth of secondary industries and a great flow of capital into industry were also foreseen. Another Scheme.

Details of a stabilisation scheme were submitted to the committee by Mr K. Schreiber, of Rongatea. Hr Schreiber suggested that a loan of £5,000,000 should be raised in New Zealand, if possible, at 4 per cent interest and 1 per cent sinking hind, to be lent to producers and industries at 2\ per cent interest plus 1 per cent sinking fund. This loan, he suggested, should be repeated for four successive years, representing £20,000,000. In the fifth year the accumulated interest and sinking fund would be lent also to producers and industries, this to be repeated for eight consecutive years. Dealing with the conditions for lending, he said that the maximum loan to a farmer was to be £SOO, six months’ interest to be paid in advance. Mr Schreiber said that under his scheme the Dairy Produce Board was to be the only body to market dairy prbduce. He suggested that _ increased sales could be brought about in England by expending £20,000, half to be spent in buying butter and cheese to be given away in free samples to the consumers, and the other half to be used in other forms of advertising. To protect the English farmer, he suggested that the _ New Zealand farmer should pay the British farmer a bonus.