LOCAL BODY RATES

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22465, 28 July 1938, Page 12

LOCAL BODY RATES

[ - 4 SUGGESTION OF POLITICAL BIAS [From Our Parliamentary Repc-ter.l WELLINGTON, July 27. The suggestion that many local bodies bad retrained from reducing their rates because of political bias against the Government was made by Mr C. L. Hunter (Government, Manawatu) during the financial debate in the House of Representatives to-day. Local bodies, said Mr Hunter, . had received more assistance from the present Government than ever before, both by way of subsidies and help from the Employment Promotion Fund. An Opposition member: Why don’t they reduce rates? Mr Hunter: I think many of them could have done so this year, if they worked along efficient lines. An Opposition member: What about the Christchurch Tramway Board? “I do not know about the present board.” said Mr Hunter, “but I do ' know that the old Tramway Board in Christchurch allowed the rolling stock and the tramway lines to get into such a condition that the expenditure «£ a lot of money was necessary to

restore them to a standard of efficiency. If that state of affairs is going on elsewhere, I can understand the reason for the high cost of local bodies. With many- local bodies there is wastage and general lack of efficiency.” Mr Hunter said that were it not for political bias, many local bodies could reduce their rates. Perhaps it suited local bodies to keep them up. The /wage payments of local bodies would be lower this year because of benefits from the Employment Promotion Fund at no cost to the ratepayers.