"CARDS STACKED."

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 219, 16 September 1930, Page 5

"CARDS STACKED."

REGIONAL PUNNING.

POSITION OF COUNTIES

MANUKAU RENEWS PROTEST.

"The cards are stacked so far as the counties are concerned," declared Mr. F. M. Waters, chairman of the Manukau County Council, tliis morning, when the Minister of Internal Affairs wrote inviting the council to express its opinion on the proposed regional planning boundaries. The position, said Mr. Waters, was that it was desired that the counties should be roped into the scheme. Personally he thought the council .should strongly object to being included in any area such as was suggested for it until the position was more clearly defined. A councillor proposed that the council protest against tlie regional scheme, as it had done previously when the matter was before it. Mr. Waters explained that at the'last conference of the Counties' Association the council's remit proposing; to defer the whole scheme until such time as the questions of representation, centralisation, compensation and allocation of costs were determined, was carried. The cards were stacked for the counties, as in the area that would embrace the council there were over 30 local bodies, including four counties. Although the counties controlled 2000 square miles of territory as compared with the other local bodies' 200 or 300 square miles, they would only have four representatives on a committee of 32. So far as compensation was concerned the local bodies did not know where they were, and nothing definite on the subject had so far been presented. They were asked to commit themselves to a scheme when they did not know where they were going to end up. "We don't know where the money for compensation is coming from, and we should not agree to be included in the scheme unless that and other necessary information Is forthcoming," said Mi-. Waters. "I cannot understand the Minister going on with the question when he stated the day after the Counties' Conference that nothing definite would be done about it." It was decided to direct the Minister's attention to his promise and to forward copies of the protest by the Counties' Association to the scheme to Mr. A. W. Hall, M.P., and Mr. J. N. Massey, M.P.