ESTUARY PORT.

Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 20828, 11 April 1933, Page 10

ESTUARY PORT.

WIDE REFERENDUM PROPOSED. COUNCIL COMMITTEE'S REPORT. A recommendation that the Lyttelton Harbour Board, the only body with power to act, should be asked to give careful consideration to the proposals of the Port Christchurch League and take all necessary steps to ascertain whether there was a majority in favour of the estuary port was made to the Christchurch City Council last night by the special committee, under the chairmanship of Cr. F. T. Evans, which conferred with representatives of the league on March 20. The committee presented an outline of the proposals submitted by the league, which have already been published in "The Press," and added the following comment: — "Section 327 of the Municipal Corporations Act gives certain powers to councils, but these are subject to the Harbours Act, and could not be exercised in the present case nor could the council take a poll on the question or expend any money thereon. There would probably be little or no difficulty in getting an enabling bill through Parliament, provided there was substantial £greement by the electors in the 1 arbour district, and also provided that no attempt was made to create a second harbour authority within the same district as the existing one." I Modification Proposed. Cr. Evans said he believed that a modification of the league's scheme should first be adopted and the larger project taken up afterwards. The first thing to do, in any case, would be to take a referendum. That would have to be done; and then much better progress might be made towards the realisation of the league's ideal. The conference had been most interesting, added Cr. Evans, and in a recent article, Mr E. J. Howard, M.P., had endorsed the committee's finding. Cr. Evans hoped that the league would ifbt be down-hearted, for he could assure them that {he committee had recommended only what it thought best, and had put first things first. Cr. J. McCombs, M.P., chairman of the Finance Committee, said that the idea of setting up a second harbour authority in one district would on no account be accepted by the Local Bills Committee of the House. Before a referendum was taken, all kinds of estimates of costs would have to be prepared by the Harbour Board. The deputation recognised that it was impossible to carry two harbours. If Port Christchurch was established, Lyttclton would have to be allowed to silt up, and its loan charges would still have to be paid. It was arrant nonsense to say that an estuary port could be established for £200,000 The league was not trying to mislead the peon]? about the cost: it would be very heavy indeed. They would hardly carry a referendum on a proposal to continue imposing the unemployment tax in Canterbury, after it had been lifted elsewhere. The report was adopted.