“THERE WILL BE NO TAIHOA!”

Gisborne Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 3639, 27 September 1912, Page 5

“THERE WILL BE NO TAIHOA!”

NEW LAND BILL INTRODUCED. THE FIRST READING CARRIED. PRIME MINISTER EXPLAINS THE PROPOSALS. BATTLE ROYAL ON FREEHOLD v. LEASEHOLD LOOMING. DISCUSSION OF THE AIEASURE NOT TO BE DEFERRED. By Telegraph—Special Correspondent. WELLINGTON, Sept. 26. The Land Law's Amendment Bill, which was introduced in the House of Representatives this evening by Governor’s Alessage, is a measure of 34 clauses. ■'

It deals, among other things, with town-planning, exchanges of endowment Lands for other areas, payment of Land Board members, and conditions under which small grazing runs and pastoral runs are held the subdivision of private lands, the sale of settlement lands, and the limitation of area.

TOWN PLANNING

Tow nplanning is dealt wdth in part 1 of the Bill.

It'is provided that where any land is subdivided by sale or lease or other disposition as a town a plan of the subdivision showing roads and reserves shall be prepared by a licensed surveyor and approved bv the _ Governorbefore any portion of the land is so disposed of or offered or advertised for disposition.

A fine o: c £IOO is provided for a breach of this provision.

A clause in the principle- Act of similar, but less definite, import is repealed. The payment of members of JLand Boards is increased from 10s to 15s per day, exclusive of the ordinary travelling expenses. Clause 5 establishes a uniform system of arbitration for the valuation of improvements and so forth in place of the different methods legalised by existing Acts. All such cases are to be referred to two arbitrators, one to be appointed by each party to the reference. In the event of the arbitrators being unable to agree they are to appoint an umpire. Each party is to pay the costs incidental to the appointment of his own arbitrator and the parties are to share coy ally the costs incidental to the' appointment of an umpire. The provisions in the principal Act relating to arbitration are repealed in so far as they conflict with the new clause.

Section 117 of the principal Act, which empowers tho Minister to remit one year’s rent or portion of one year’s rent to Crown tenants, is repealed and a new' clause substituted which provides that in the event of a Crown tenant being unable at any time owing to a natural disaster or other sufficient ca-use to pay his rent due the Minister may, on the recommendation of the Board, postpone the payment of no more than one year’s rent by such Crown tenant until such date as the Minister may determine. The Minister may further postpone payment of the whole or any portion of the said rent on a later date.

Before a Crown tenant is permitted to transfer or sublease any portion of his interest in his lease he is to be required to pay the whole of his rent, including any postponed portion, to the date of the sublease or transfer.

NATIONAL ENDOWMENT LANDS. Section 9 makes it lawful for the Governor, when he deems it expedient in the public interest, to do so, to grant the fee simple of any area: of national endowment land in exchange for the fee simple of any other land which, in his opinion, is of approximately equal value. On any such exchange ten per cent, of the estimated value of the national endowment land may be paid or received in cash. Moneys paid by the Crown in this way are to be paid out of the national -endowment account and moneys received are to be paid into this account. Section 10 enacts that in certain cases small areas of freehold land or of land leased from the Crown not exceeding five acres in area may be acquired for any purpose beneficial to the public by any person who already holds tho prescribed maximum area of land.

Introducing the Bill the Prime Minister explained that this clause was intended to remove a hardship resting on dairy factories and similar establishments.

Section 11 provides that the limitation provisions set forth in part Xlll of the principal Act shall not apply to land proclaimed as a road, land acquired as a site for a dairy, cheese, or fruit-preserving church, and such lands, Crown land exchanges for private land received from tho Jn.vn or any local authority pursuant to any contract or arrangement for tin- exchange of lands for roads or any rmbiio purposes, any interest acquired in respect of land formerly used or laid off as a road, but subsequently closed or stopped. The new section is to apply to all such interests acquired since Novom-' ber 20’ 1907 (the date of tho passing of the Land Laws Amendment Act, 1907.) The Bill contains a number of amendments, some of which are technical, in regard to small grazing runs. Section 218 of the principal Act, providing for the renewal of leases of small graziing runs, is repealed and a new clause substituted which provides that any pastoral lands may be classified by the Board as small grazing runs in areas not exceeding 15.000 acres. The Board may, in the case of any small grazing run or pastoral run, require the lessee during the last two years of the lease to divide the run into three approximately equal parts.

Tlie Minister may, on the recommendation of tlie Board, determine that the land comprised in any such lease .shall not he expiry, but that the lease bo disposed of in two or more allotment's by way of renewable lease. Upon tho expiration of tlie leaso the lessee shall be entitled to receive a renewable lease of such on© of the allotments as he elects.

If the lessee selects to accept such a renewable lease he shall also be entitled to receive value of the improvements oil the other allotment or allotments into which liis original mil has been divided.

If the lessee elects not to accept a renewable lease he shall be entitled to receive on the expiration of the original lease (a) tho total value of the improvements; (b) the value, if any, of tlie right of renewal .(exclusive of tlie value of improvements) which he would have had if this section had not been passed. SETTLEMENT OF PRIVATE LANDS.

Part II deals with agreements for tlie subdivision of private land for settlement purposes. Explaining his Bill Mr Massey stated that this part would apply to the case of an owner who desired to sell a block of land to tho Crown or to have it subdivided for settlement purposes. The Minister was empowered, in such cases, t-o make arrangements with tho owner to have everything necessary done in the way of surveys, subdivisions, and reading. 'l’lie land could then be cut up and the settlers being given in every caso the right to acquire the freehold, the State would liave no. responsibility after the settlers had taken over their holdings, except that of collecting from the settlers the money expended in reading and subdividing. Detailed provisions of this part of the Bill are that purchasing settlers shall pay the owner of the land a deposit not exceeding 10 per cent, of tho price tendered. Tho balance of the price is to be paid in annual instalments over a period of not less than 10, nor moro than 20 years. Interest is to be paid at the rate of five per cent, per annum. In the caso of lease with the right of purchase tho term of lease is to he 20 years, tho lessee to have the right to purchase the allotment at any time dtiring the period of the lease at a stated price. The rent is not to exceed five per cent of such price. Part 111. of the Bill is to form part of and be read together with the Land for Settlements Act, 1908.

It is provided that the Minister, on the recommendation of tho Land Board, may reduce the capital value of any allotment to such amount as he thinks fit. In any caso an allotment- remains unsolected for more than one year after the time when it becomes available for selection. ■Section 30 provides that any settlement lands so acquired after the passing of the Act or anv settlement lands So acquired after the passing of the Act or any settlement land heretofore acquired, hut not selected under the Land for Settlements Act, may be sold in fee simple if tho Minister so determines.

THE OFFER OF THE FREEHOLD. By Section 31 lessees of settlement lands are empowered to acquire tlie freeholds of their holdings at a price equal to the value of the land at the time otf purchase loos the present value of the lessee’s interest in the unexpired term of his lease and his interest in the value of any improvements affected by him or to the value of which he is entitled.

The price is to he determined by arbitration-

This right of purchase is limited by the next section (31), which provides that it shall net be lawful for any person to purchase an area, of settlement land, in fee simple if such laud, together with all other land of any description owned, held, or occupied by him under any tenure, whether severally or jointly, exceeds a total area of 3000 acres calculated in the manner provided by Section 97 of the Land Act, 1908.

In explaining his Bill Mr Massey explained that- the area of 3000 acres applied only to third class land Tho maximum area of first-class land to be acquired in this way would ha 400 acres.

A person who holds any interest in what is or was settlement land is to be allowed to acquire any estate or interest in any other allotment which is, or was at any time, settlement land. Mr Massey claimed that the effect of these provisions would he to provide the State with a. certain amount of money for tho purchase' of other lands.

Mr Witty: Will the lessees have to pav cash-? Mr Massey: No. Credit will be arranged. Mr Witty: Then not much money will be available. Sir Jas. CarroOil said that the Bill failed to attack any higher reform jninciple.

The Prime Minister said that lie did not attack high principles. He supported them every time. Answering Mr. Buchanan, the Premier said that the Bill did not contain new definitions of land- It contained only half tho proposals of the Government, but- it contained as much as could he dealt with this session. Sir Jas l . Can-oil asked the Premier to toll the House when the second reading debate would be taken, and begged’ him to be emphatic in opening that debate on tho question of leaseholder versus freehold The Premier: I can assure the ••lion, gentleman that there wall be no “taihoa” as far as tho second reading ol‘ this Bill is concerned. Sir James Carroll): The Government so far has profited by the “tailioa” principle. The Bill was read a first time.