GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 68, 21 March 1934, Page 6

GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE.

The Auckland Harbour Board some weeks ago decided to reducer the pilotage charges of the port. As the cost of the service is less than £7000 per annum, and the revenue in the neighbourhood of £36,000, there seemed room for alteration. At yesterday's meeting of the Board it was announced that the Marine Department—in • other words the Government—was not prepared to accept the Board's proposals except in modified form. Almost without comment or discussion the demand of the Marine Department was acceded to. The reason for the original change was to bring costs to oversea shipping into line with the port of Wellington. A considerable factor in prompting the change was the practical certainty that • Wellington would be substituted for Auckland as the New Zealand port of call by the Matson American Line. In effect. Government decrees that our port shall not be in a position to compete on equal terms with Wellington. This question has nothing to do with the agitation of the various shipping companies against the Matson Line being permitted to engage m the trans-Tasman passenger trade. A much larger number of passengers enters and leaves the port of Wellington to and from Australia than is the case with Auckland. The reason is simple: Wellington caters for the whole ol the South Island and a considerable portion of the North Island. Therefore more New Zealanders and Australians would be travelling by these American steamers were Wellington substituted for Auckland. No, it is a deliberate interference by Government with the right of the Auckland Harbour Board to exercise its control of the port's affairs. We are astonished that there was not some protest by members of the Board at this arbitrary Government action. Rights of local government in all directions are being Steadily filchfid by the seat of Government, and this is another flagrant example. If the local-bodies affected do not vigorously protest they will have only themselves to blame if they are left with only the skeleton of the structure that has been laboriously built for the control of local affairs. .•<_.- , .