THE WAIPA POST. Printed on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. THURSDAY, 21st FEBRUARY, 1929. POPULATION AND FINANCE.

Waipa Post, Volume 38, Issue 2271, 21 February 1929, Page 4

THE WAIPA POST. Printed on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. THURSDAY, 21st FEBRUARY, 1929. POPULATION AND FINANCE.

LAST March the national indebtedness amounted to £173 per head of population. Now it is about £175, and if the recent £7,000,000 is included the per capita indebtedness, will reach nearly £IBO. For all practical purposes this is fixed and in the present state of the country's development cannot be reduced. On the contrary, there is every prospect of it being increased beyond the £IBO mark. Seeing therefore that the debt cannot be reduced the only way to decrease the individual burden is to increase the number of persons who are to bear the burden. The increase of the Dominion's population therefore is a matter of much interest from a financial standpoint. The statistics of the population increases reveal that the advances of recent years have not been maintained in 1928, the population increase being as follows: 1920, 30,430; 1921, 35,106; 1922, 26,167; 1923, 24,137; 1924, 27,382; 1925, 30,827; 1926 28,325; 1927 20,535; 1928, 16,796. The total population increases from 1920 to 1927 Inclusive was 222,909, an average increase of 27,864. Last year's total of 16,796, therefore, fails short of the previous eight years' average by 11,068. This is an uncomfortable position, and it is worth while inquiring as to how this came about. Undoubtedly the reduced population increase of 1928 was brought about by the withdrawal of part of the Governmental assistance to immigrants. This reduced the 1927 quota of 11,327 to 6,339 the following year. An unhealthy contribution of 5,000 towards last year's reduction is, therefore, made in population increase, and further 3,954 persons went overseas to take up permanent residence out of the Dominion. This number does not equal the previous year's figure which was 4,145, but it still remains much higher than the normal figure which is usually about 2,500. Naturally the chief loss of population has been to Australia which in 1927 amounted to 2,855 and it can be reasonably concluded that many of these went thither in search of employment. The causes of our population increase not being maintained therefore are: (1) reduction of incoming permanent residents, and (2) increase of departures to take up permanent residence abroad.

It cannot be argued that this country has yet reached its maximum of development. It has natural resources which have not been fully exploited. The land is not being worked to its maximum capacity in any district in the Dominion. In some districts large tracts have gone out of occupation and use and our progress demands that they be brought back again into productivity. This should be done. A more intensive , use of occupied farm lands should also be insisted on. Then a larger country population will be required, creating work for a still larger town population.

If, therefore, a decrease in our per capita indebtedness is to be brought about, it will only be achieved by increasing the farming population. The problem is how this can best be done.