COSTLY CONTROL.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 209, 3 September 1932, Page 11

COSTLY CONTROL.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT. BUOYANCY IN FINANCE DRAG OF DOWNWARD MOVEMENT. DEEPLY-ROOTED CAUSES. (No. XW.) One of the lessons to be learned from p, survey of local ho&f finances is that public works should 'be planned > and learried out with an eye to property ▼alues. This has not been sufficiently realised in the past, and it is a point that needs emphasising; yet it might easily be missed the detail of an inquiry. Tie intricacies of rates and levies, loans alia sinking funds, achninistrative costs and valuations must foe thrust aside if one is. to> .take a broader view of local governments ' '';'.." '. ~ In-this investigation it has been shown that the citizen as ratepayer experienced, a rise in the cost ■ of local control, and the mounting indebtedness is a phase of this problem. It hft9 cramped the rating system and has made it rigid and inelastic and unable to contract except within small limits. Today, in consequence of this, there is a lack of buoyancy.in local finance, and the rate levy is a drag on many districts. Part, of the trouble arises from too rapid growth in recent years and the mistake of pushing improvement works too far ahead, and.part from the slide in values'. These tendencies, taken together, show the far-reaching effects of a borrowing policy. Even in the' limited scope of Greater Auckland these effects are much in evidence. When Revenue Plowed Freely. It is necessary to go back ten years to see the beginning of' movement which has led to the present difficulties. The. 16cal bodies of New Zealand were then faced with a new set of problems. There was a clamour on every side for good roads and modern services; every channel of revenue was flowing freely and prosperity Tvas spreading. The conditions favoured progress, and for some years the upward movement gathered strength; but municipalities could not go on dipping more and more deeply into the lender'e purse, nor could the public debt continue indefinitely to rise faster than property values and the inpome of the ratepayer. The check, when it came, coincided with the depression, jind was all the more severe because of $lat. Had there been no depression, or pnly a mild one, it is probable -.that most bodies would have been but embarrassed. Economies, hotvever, would have been necessary. As it is, some are carrying a load which is almost too great to bear; others, more fortunate, have still ample revenues, and many more have cut iheir costs to meet the'«times. Generally speaking, they have a firm basis for progress, but their immediate difficulties focus attention on the need of reform. ■ J

Should Borrowing be Centralised? A tentative step towards reform has been taken by the New Zealand Municipal Association, in suggesting the centralised control.of all loans and sinking funds. The association proposes that loans should be raised by the State, and the Government should invest all sinking funds. In putting forward this suggestion the association states that the majority of the local bodies are too small to borrow to the best advantage and are unable to make the best use of their funds, and, further, there has 'been a tendency to create epecial rating aroas, thus adding to administrative costs. Many will admit the weaknesses of the present system, but It is - doubtful whether centralisation is the beet remedy. The proposal needs the most careful consideration before such, a radical change is made, and it will probably be much discussed in the near future. Some of the other problems are more deeply-rooted, and suggestions for change are often met by the cry, "Don't injure local interest." There is no doubt that local interest and good government go together, but when this plea is used to justify the existence of the smallest bodies,- it is overdone. The small counties, boroughs and town and road districts are not always those with the best records. In many, respects they fall far short of the ideal in area, wealth and population, and even the largest bodies may not have reached the point where further growth must mean a sacrifice of local interest. All the evidence of statistics goes to prove that these larger units set a standard which, generally speaking, is attained by few of those at the bottom' of the scale. Tendencies in America. The value of local interest is recognised not only'by those who defend the present system, but also by the advocates of the metropolitan oi government. In America, where cities have been more venturesome than elsewhere, the face of local government has undergone many recent changes, and metropolitan control has been tried. The. general practice has been to retain the email authorities under the wings of large boards to manage local affairs in their own areas. In this respect the metropolitan system differs from that of amalgamations. Where outside districts are absorbed and cities Spread their power, minor bodies become extinct, and in America some of the cities which have grown in this way exercise powers similar to those vested in the county borough councils of England. They include under their control transport services, electric light and power, town planning, drainage and water supply, traffic control, fire protection, hospitals, the police force and education. London's New Problems. A kind of compromise between the large unified system of control and the email unit is seen in London. The problems of London are continually growing. As new districts spring up outside the older boundaries it becomes necessary to provide these young communities with public utilities, and, on a huge scale, London's problems are those of all growing cities. The water, traffic and electricity services are examples of control by regional boards, indirectly elected and controlling a wide area. The multiplication of these boards has been condemned by some critics, and it is said that the people take little interest <«i their meetings. It must be rcmem-

bered, however, that London has over 450 local bodies, and one wonders whether the system is ibecomirfg unwieldy through its very size, and the mighty new London, with its teeming millions, which sprawls over five counties, will have to grapple with fresh problems. (To be continued.)