UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF

Waikato Times, Volume 112, Issue 18796, 18 November 1932, Page 8

UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF

THE VOTE DISCUSSED. INCREASED ALLOCATION URGED. LABOUR'S 'CONTENTIONS. (By Telegrapb.—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Thursday. The vote for the Unemployment Fund was discussed in the House of Representatives this evening. The Hon. A. Hamilton, Acting-Min-ister of Employment, said that the tenacre scheme was not financed out of the Unemployment Fund, hut out ot the capital fund of £500,000 established by Parliament last year. This fund was really a big assistance to the Unemployment Fund. The latter fund perhaps paid for tire maintenance of unemployed on allotments for the first three months, but after that, it was completely relieved from assisting these people. The report of the committee set up to investigate the boy unemployment problem would be ready any time now. The Minister said it was necessary for local committees to cope with the boy problem as far as possible, because it was undesirable to add to the strain on the Unemployment Fund. This fund was quite healthy, but it was necessary that it should remain healthy. .Mr W. E. Parry (Labour—Auckland Central) moved an amendment seeking to reduce the Unemployment Fund vote by £2. He said the object of the amendment was to indicate that the House was of the opinion that the Unemployment Board should arrange a conference with owners of dwellings and unemployed with a view to arranging some system of payments toward rent. The amendment was defeated by 33 votes to 19. The Leader of the Opposition, Mr H. E. Holland, asked whether there was any possibility of relief allocations being restored to the former rates. Mr Parry moved to reduce the vote by £1 as an indication of disapproval of reducing the allocations. Would Cripple the Fund. Mr Hamilton said the reason for the reduction had been stated previously. During the three winter months there had been extra allocations and the board had been spending at the rate of £90,000 a week. If it continued at that rate, it would soon cripple the fund. Although there had been a reduction in allocations compared with those for the winter months, there had not been a reduction compared with the allocations at this time last year, and registrations were not 'considerably greater. He was still hopeful that there would be a decrease in the registrations in the summer months, and in that event it would be possible to restore the rates of relief. Mr R. A. Wright (Government — Wellington Suburbs) appealed to the Government to see that the unemployed received sufilcient to provide them with food, clothing and accommodation. 110 said if Parliament did not face the position now, the time would come when it would have to face it. “ The men are not getting sufficient to eat. These men only want a leader, that’s all, and one day' some Napoleon will arise among them," he declared. The Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates said that the Government could not accept general statements. If it could not be shown that in individual cases people were going without food, the Government would see that provision was made for them. Mr Holland said the reduced allocation would mean that hundreds of families would have to go short of food and clothing. He agreed with Mr Wright that there was a grave danger to-day from people who were suffering, and insisted that if Mr Coates investigated the amount of work which the unemployed, both married and single, were receiving to-day, he would obtain definite evidence of the misery they were undergoing. Mr Parry’s amendment was defeated by 32 votes to 19, Mr Wright and Mr E. T. Tirikatene (Ratana — Southern Maori) voting with Labour. The vote was then passed. THE HOLIDAY PERIOD. TWO WEEKS’ PAY FREE. * WELLINGTON, Thursday. The Unemployment Board's decision to pay relief workers for two weeks at Christmas and New Year without requiring any work to be performed, announced yesterday, was confirmed in an official statement to-day. To assist men in camps to return to their homes for Christmas, arrangements are being made to pay half fares. Transport by rail will be arranged where possible, while in other cases the most suitable transport will be arranged.