CIVIC ELECTIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 102, 2 May 1935, Page 10

CIVIC ELECTIONS.

THE MAYORALTY.

MR. DAVIS AT EPSOM.

ANALYSIS OF BATE POSITION

An overflowing meeting at the Epeom Public Library last night was addressed by Mr. Ernest Davis, Citizens' Committee candidate for the Mayoralty. People crowded into the back and front porches of the building, and considerable numbers were obliged to go home without even seeing the candidate or hearing any of his supporters speak. Mr. J. E. Beachcn presided.

In justification of lite policy of making no rash promises, but of sponsoring a programme of prudent and progressive development, Air. Davis analysed the rating position, with the object of establishing the following two main points: (1) As interest payments took the lion's share of city receipts, the greatest care must be exercised before loan indebtedness was increased, and in providing for works and services, financed from that source, th« governing factor must be the reproductive character of the undertaking, so that further burdens would not lie on the ratepayers; (2) as the balance of the revenue was not, relatively speaking, large, its allocation to essential services must be carefully planned, in order that the best return for the citizens would be obtained.

City Budget. Reiterating that a cheeseparing policy would lie as repugnant to his nature as one which did not, in municipal administration, as in private life and business, provide for the cutting of the cloth in accordance with the cloth available, the candidate said the city's receipts and expenditure, for the year which ended on March 31, 1934, afforded a reliable ft-.ido for analysis. The revenue relating to the council undertaking proper was £728,769, out' of which £330.003 was absorbed in interest and sinking fund payments, while £125,038 was paid for essential services. Thus, all that remained for general work of the council was £207,079, or 30.0 per cent of the total revenue. To those receipts rates, £480,484, made trie main contribution, received as follows: —Special, for interest payments, £210,021; general, £100,550; hospital, £54,332; drainage, £31,180; sanitation, £10,439; library, £7059. Collections of rate arrears last year were £12,000 less than the amount budgeted for, because of the refusal of the State Advances Department to accept responsibility for thevpayment of rates on properties which him reverted to it. The Government Departments should share the same responsibility as the private mortagee in this respect. (Applause.) For \he maintenance of streets, parks, public lighting, traffic control, and payment of wages and salaries, £280,550, derived from,the general rates and endowments, licenses, rents, and so on, was paid. Salaries ana wages themselves accounted for £170.500.

Net Indebtedness. The net loan indebtedness of Auckland city as at March 31, 1934, was £4,247,038, said Mr. Davis. Against this, assets at the same date totalled £7,040,898. As a direct result of the loan conversion operation, which necessarily would alter the figures as at the end of the final year just closed, a savin" was made to the city, equivalent to a reduction of 2d in the £ in [the rates. That was all to the good. '-The decline in valuations over the last four years, which had been to the benefit of the ratepayers, had represented a corresponding loss to council revenue of £40,000, equivalent to a rate reduction of 4d in the £. At the same time, such had been the administration, there had been no necessity to increase the rates. On top of that there was the burden of the iniquitous' 25 per cent exchange, which had added to the city's oversea interest charges £40,000 annually—the equivalent of a rate of 4d in the £. Mr. Dayis said the figures he had quoted indicated why he had enunciated a programme of prudent, progressive development. A vote of confidence in Mr. Davis and the candidates supporting him was carried unanimously.