A Set Back to Labour

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17320, 5 December 1921, Page 6

A Set Back to Labour

Few more striking incidents have occurred in recent years in Australia than the decisive defeat of Labour in the Sydney municipal elections. For three years a small Labour majority, which took its orders from the Australian Labour Party executive, has ruled the city, the nature of its regime being such as to move a Sydney newspaper to declare that "Never before has a lug Australian city been captured by " ward politicians of the Tammany sort '' and systematically exploited in the "interests of a class." Its administration has been marked by gross extravagance and by equally gross inefficiency. The rates in Sydney have been raised until they are nearly twice as much as those of Melbourne, and men experienced in civic administration assert that though street maintenance charges have never been so high, the condition of the streets has never been worse, and that it would cost a quarter of a million to bring the streets of Sydney up to the average condition of the streets of Melbourne. Incidental to this state of affairs, it is noteworthy that the infant death-rate in Sydney has risen in the past year or two to 74.2 per 1000 births. The general manager of the electHcity department has estimated the loss on this year's operations would be some £38,000. As in the first quarter the department showed a loss of £39,000, it looked as though his estimate would be greatly under the actual amo<uht lost, but the Council increased the rates fpr current, and it is now hoped the loss on the year's working will he only a few thousands. A mile or so away, a private cpmpany still supplies, an adjacent borough with current at the old charges, pays heavy rates and taxes which Sydney's municipal enterprise escapes, and yet manages to give its shareholders an 8 per cent, dividend. The Sydney supply, it may be added, is: quite inadequate to the needs of the city. In spite of the high rates, the deficit in the city's - finance at the end of the current year 1 has been estimated at. £60,000. The Labour clique, says the critio we have quoted, "has used "its control of the money power.to purohase the ,support of the muni"cipfcl employees, to whom have been " conceded* not only large increases "in wages, but Saturdays off, three " weeks' holiday per year and all pub"lie holidays, long service leave, full "pay when they are sick (or say they "are), and other costly gifts." For what these concessions have cost we have the authority of a Labour alderman,, who is vice-chairman of the 'Finance Committee. The Council has more than £OOO employees. The concession to thein of the 44-hour week cost the ratepayers £IB,OOO a year, the amount paid above the award rate of wages cost another £89,000 i and the increase from two to three weeks' holiday £12,000, and these are only some of the ways in which the Labour majority was generous at the expense of somebody elso, while in the election campaign other good things were promised the employees. Labour's rule has also been marked by proposals and transactions of an exceedingly dubious kind, some leading 'to charges of bribery and corruption which are at present the subject legal proceedings. All these blots on the management of the city have been the subject of" frequent criti-' cism by the papers and in consequence the Lord 'Mayor threatened recently that if what he described as misrepresentation continued he would prevent the admission of the Press representatives to the Council meetings. By the exclusion of the Press and the rigid and unscrupulous operation of the "gag" against' non-Labour members of the Council many a point could, no doubt, have been worked for the benefit of the ! supporters « Labour. The systematic hostility which the Council has displayed towards returned soldiers is another point against its rule which the public probably did not forget last week.

It f" hay© been little consolation to the' citizens who have groaned under the maladministration of this body of dictators to realise, that it was their own fault, though the fact may be taken as & warning to other cities where the electors neglect their duty. .Labour secured the power, and patronage which it has misused for three years because only some 50 per cent, of the electors on the roll voted at the municipal election of 1918. Sydney thus got xhe Council that it deserved, and has regretted itever since; Hie oppoi sition to the Council and .xts methods j has been growing stwidily, and this year it became so- evident that a great ' effort would be made to secure, clean, [ sound government, that Labour resorted tp various deviws to/mamtain its

; hold upon the Tammany-ridden city. It began by endeavouring to have thousands of ratepayers struck off the roll on all sorts of pretences. In one ward alone over 1100 objections were lodged, but when the Magistrate stated that a two-guinea fine would be imposed in the case of each frivolous and vexatious objection, and the representatives of the A.L.P. had accordingly been fined to an amount exceeding £IBO, most of the objections were withdrawn. Then the Labour majority tried forcibly to incorporate in the city an adjoining borough, which 3s solidly Labourite in its views. This was defeated by the resistance of the borough concerned. The next move was to endeavour to secure an amendment of the law, and give Sydney aduli suffrage, with only a month's residential qualification. Hitherto the electors roll has been composed of property owners, lessees, and tenants who paid rent, and lodgers and occupiers in occupation of premises valued, at £lO a year, joint tenants, and companion The result of ; the desired change of franchise would have reduced the voters, in several wards, to a mere hiUidful, and would have disfranchised all the business and professional men and their employees, who though living out of the city, spend their days in it, and are therefore deeply concerned in its decent management. This Bill got no further than the Lower House, and a proposal to have the election r.o-aponed until next year 3 when tho Labour Government might manage to force the Bill through by flooding tho Upper Hou&e with its nominees, also failed. So the elections took place on the old franchise, practically the widest of its kind in Australia, and instead of a gang of Labour, aldermen, virtually the creatures of the A.L.P. Executive, the majority of the City Council now consists of nominees of the Citizens' Reform Association, pledged to good government. But the respite may be only temporary. The Labour junta means to try to have the Adu't Suffrage Bill passed through Parliament early next year, and another measure to provide for holding a fresh municipal election in twelve months' time. If the Upper House is recalcitrant, the Labour Government, itself under tho thumb of the A.L.P., will no doubt obligingly swamp it with men of the right colour. Sydney is therefore not permanently safe from a resumption of Tammany government as long as the present Government is in power. Still, it has gained a year, and in that tinie may be able to do something to repair the effects of three years' misrule.