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12
Staff.
During the year it was found necessary, owing to the growth
of the work, to provide increased medical, nursing and clerical
assistance.
The extra medical assistance was obtained on a sessional basis
pending the time when there will be sufficient work to warrant
further half-time assistance. The half-time nurse resigned during
the year, and was replaced by a whole-time officer.. An additional
Sanitary Inspector was appointed, particularly to make it possible
to deal with increased work under the Housing Act. Two additional
junior clerks were also appointed; one particularly to deal
with the clerical work arising out of the increased housing inspection.
VITAL STATISTICS.
Population.
The Registrar-General's estimate for the population for 1929
is (Birth rate) 63,070—(Death rate) 62,240, despite the fact that our
building activities, particularly for the last five years, have been
very large, the extent of which may be demonstrated by the fact that
the amount of the loans to house purchasers under the Housing and
Small Dwellings Acquisition Acts at the end of 1929 amounted to
£2,633,654. This estimate has a detrimental effect on all the vital
statistics, in that they appear larger than they really should be
owing to being based on a smaller population. This however cannot
be avoided in intercensal periods as the figures throughout the
Country must be taken on a uniform basis, and the fact that our
housing activities are producing a large influx of population, does
not appear in the figures supplied to us by the Registrar-General
which are based on a definite mathematical basis used uniformly.
The death-rate population excludes all non-civilian males
whether serving at home or abroad; whilst the birth-rate (and