H.—llA.

As the charge on income other than salary or wages is not payable until the year following that in which it is actually received, the amount received by way of " other income " during the year ended 31st March, 1.939, will not be available until returns for the year have been fully analysed. The payments from the Fund during the year amounted to £6,4-73,808, an increase of £2,234,352 as compared with the previous year. During the past year the policy of placing all physically fit men in full-time employment on useful works of a national or local character has been vigorously pursued, and expenditure amounting to £4,595,290 was incurred in the promotion of full-time employment. Increases are also shown under the heading of "Assistance to Industry" (£118,459) and "Loans" (£65,407), while reductions have been effected under almost all other headings. The payment of sustenance allowances to persons who, for health or other reasons, were unfit for sustained employment absorbed the sum of £667,149. The balance remaining in the Fund at the end of the year was £207,544-. The major portion of this balance will be absorbed in the payment of outstanding commitments at the 31st March, 1939, and as no further revenue will be payable into the Employment Promotion Fund provision for expenditure to be incurred in the promotion of full-time employment will in future be subject to appropriation by Parliament in terms of the Public Revenues Act, 1926. FARM SCHEMES. Scheme No. 4a : Farm-labour Assistance. The object of the original scheme was to provide labour from'the unemployed ranks for carrying out productive work on farm lands. Farmers willing to employ additional hands were offered the opportunity of obtaining registered unemployed labour, the selection of men being made by the local Unemployment Committee. The farmer and the worker arranged the rate of pay, and the then Unemployment Board subsidized the actual wages up to 15s. a week for a single man and £1 ss. a week for a married man, a condition being that the farmer found the man in board and lodging and housing where necessary. The periods of subsidized employment varied from four to twenty-six weeks. The scheme commenced in March, 1931, and ceased in March, 1935, but was continued for a further twelve months only in a few special cases. The amount expended from the Unemployment Fund was £504,453, and throughout the operation of the scheme the numbers engaged were 10,886 single men and 13,119 married men. Assistance to farmers engaged upon their own properties was commenced in June, 1932. In many cases smaller farms had not reached that stage of production where the returns in cash or kind were sufficient to provide the bare necessities, and a measure of relief was necessary to avoid forcing the holders into abandoning their properties. This applied particularly to those cases where the properties were practically totally undeveloped and the farmer had little or no stock. Periods of assistance were approved up to thirteen weeks, with renewals of this term where necessary. The rates of sustenance payable to Scheme 4a recipients at the 31st March 1939 were— £ s. d. Single man . . . . .. . . . . .. . . 015 0 Married man, wife only .. .. .. .. .. ..150 Married man, wife and one child . . . . . . .. ..190 Married man, wife and two children . . . . . . ..1130 Married man, wife and three children . . . . . . . . 117 0 Married man, wife and four children . . . . . . . . ..210 Married man, wife and five children .. .. .. .. ..250 Married man, wife and six children . . .. .. . . ..290 Married man, wife and seven children or more .. .. .. ..2130 These rates have since been increased in certain directions to conform with scales paid under the Social Security Act. The amount expended over the period 1932-39 was £139,937, and the scheme gave employment to 4,368 married men and 781 single men. Scheme .No. 4f : Development of Farm Lands. Scheme 4b was also commenced in April, 1.931, for the purpose of stimulating employment by granting a subsidy to farmers to undertake developmental work which they could not consider doing with their own resources with registered and eligible unemployed workers. This class of work is carried out on a co-operative contract basis. The maximum subsidy was originally 33§ per cent., but this was soon increased to 50 per cent.; from Ist February, 1939, the subsidy was further increased up to a maximum of 75 per cent, of the labour cost of the contract. The work carried out includes bushfelling, scrub-cutting, rush-grubbing, stumping and logging, draining, clearing noxious weeds, fencing, and other development work. Since the inception of the scheme approximately 35,200 men have been employed, and the subsidies paid total £424,495. As this amount represents probably less than half the labour cost of the work done, it will be seen that the total expenditure on labour, tools, material, &c., must be considerably in excess of £1,000,000, and apart from the excellent avenue for employment which it affords its contribution to the production of the country is apparent. It is pleasing to note that at present many farmers are availing themselves of the scheme, and indications are that the present year will see a substantial revival of interest in this form of assistance. This excellent result is due to a large extent to the earnest co-operation which has been extended at all times by the field staff of the Department of Lands and Survey, and it is fitting to record here this Department's appreciation of the service. Scheme No. 4f : Subsidized Farm Training. This scheme was introduced in July, 1937, for the purpose of encouraging farmers, by means of a subsidy, to engage inexperienced unemployed single youths and men between the ages of eighteen, and twenty-five years. It was terminated on 31st March, 1938, and resulted in the employment of 648 men.

5