H.—35.

MAORIS. Unemployment among members of the Maori race is still a problem requiring special consideration. Out of a total adult male Maori population of just over 17,000 (including half-castes) it is estimated that between 5,000 and 7,000 were registered during the year as unemployed and received assistance from the Unemployment Fund. During the year the Board spent an amount of £155,735 on the direct relief of unemployment amongst Natives under its various schemes. Probably the greater proportion of Natives who obtained such employment under Schemes 5, 4a, camp schemes, &c., were living in European fashion. Wherever possible, Natives living in the communal Maori pa have been transferred to Native development schemes under the control of the Native Land Settlement Board, such schemes being financed by grants from the Unemployment Fund. Reference to these grants and to administrative co-operation between the two Boards was made in the last preceding annual report. The Native Land Settlement Board reports that it has approved development schemes and private contracts involving a total commitment of £107,768 during the financial year (including portion of grants carried forward from the previous year). Actual expenditure, however, by the Native .Land Settlement Board amounted to only £53,918, the difference being accounted for by contracts approved and not commenced at 31st March, 1935,' or contracts still in course of completion. Due to the fact that all of this expenditure was not paid out from the Unemployment Fund during the financial year, the payments by the Unemployment Board were only £39,843. _ Under all schemes the Board's expenditure for relief of unemployment of Natives during the year 1934-35 was as follows :—- Amount. Scheme. £ Scheme No. 5 .. .. •• •• •• •• •• Scheme No. 4a •• •• 6,7 8 County camps .. .. •• •• •• •• •• ° Public Works Department and Forestry Department camps .. .. 31,93Z Other schemes .. .. • ■ • - • • • • .. 22,607 Total 155,735 Through grants to Native Land Settlement Board .. .. •• 39,843 Grand total .. •• •• •• •• •• £195,578 Grants from the Unemployment Board to the Native Land. Settlement Board are utilized to give relief to unemployed Natives, the amount of individual relief being determined according to family responsibilities, degree of necessity, &c., and based generally on existing Scheme 5 rates. The Natives are employed on such work as bush-felling, sowing, top-dressing, fencing, scrub-cutting, drainage, roading, ploughing and general cultivation, planting trees and shelter belts, building drains, and laying water-supply, buildings, river-protection works, and generally effecting improvements to Native lands. Broadly speaking, the general policy of the Native Land Settlement Board is to meet the immediate need of relief by expending the unemployment grant on the development of Native-owned lands m order to assist the Natives in becoming self-supporting settlers. EXPENDITURE ON UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF IN RECENT YEARS. The cost to the State for the provision of unemployment relief measures in recent years is shown by the following figures : —

Expenditure by " Other Departments " shows a further increase during the financial year 1934-35. Settlement of unemployed workers on the land under the control of the Lands and Survey Department (Small Farms Board) accounted for the greater proportion of expenditure under this heading, approximately £220,000,

2—H. 35.

9

Other Department 8 State Forest Subsidies to Unemployment Tota]s _ Year. (including Main Service. N ( ew Zealand Local Bodies. Fund. Highways). | Railways). £ | £ £ £ £ £ 1926-27 •• 130,000 14,240 .. •• •• 0 1927-28 379,565 ! 27,550 .. 75,106 .. 482,221 1928-29 .. 680,393 50,250 3,500 68,566 .. ®J2,709 1929-30 •• 914,109 185,400 204,464 111,728 .. 1,415,701 1930-31 ■■ 1,249,446 82,000 21,933 116,768 313,209 1,783,356 1931-3 9 886,953 74,000 14,684 11,478 2,216,886 3,204,001 IqS J« " 484 554 | 12,088 216 3,687,897 4,184,755 1933 34 2,000 185,906 .. 4,130,686 4,674,283 ISti :: ; 2; 820 270,833 3,773,132 4,449,397 Totals .. 5,483,323 ! 438,260 713,408 383,862 14,121,810 |21, 140,663