LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS Paparua Electors Have Choice Of 12 Issues

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31802, 5 October 1968, Page 18

LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS Paparua Electors Have Choice Of 12 Issues

While Paparua County electors will have to settle the issue in only five of the county’s 12 ridings at the local body elections on October 12, all will have a vote for the contested county seats on the Drainage Board, the Transport Board and the Catchment Board.

In addition, there i will be restricted-area polls for the Hornby Licensing Trust, for two of the county districts on the Central Canterbury Power Board, and for urban Halswell electors to determine whether they will come into the Drainage Board district. Thus the electors, wholly or partly, are concerned with 12 separate issues. There are about 7600 electors on the main county roll, and 800-odd on the supplementary roll. Eight sitting members of the council were re-elected in the seven no-contest ridings. They are Messrs W. L. Ragg and R. E. C. Britnell (Sockburn). R. S. Mayer (Islington), A. Y. Shuker (Templeton), C. W. A. Kyle (Yaldhurst). L. P Manion (West Melton), L. J. Cutler (Ladbrooks) and the country chairman, Mr D. H. Warren (Prebbleton). Mrs P. M. Zeff, who stood as a Labour candidte in 1965, was elected unopposed to the Hospital Board, succeeding Mi F. W. Gilbert, who defeated her in 1965 but is not up for re-election. Paparua shares this seat with Riccarton Borough, and Paparua considers it is now big enough to justify a seat of its own. Application was made too late for this to be effective this year. There was no contest for the combined Paparua-Heath cote-Ellesmere-Malvern counties’ two seats on the Harbour Board. Elected unopposed

were the sitting member, Mi G. E. Wright, and Mr J. K McAlpine, a former chairman of the board, and, until his retirement from national politics in 1966, the Minister of Railways. Hornby Interest

Hornby electors always take a keen interest in council and power board affairs. This is reflected in eight nominations for the three Hornby riding seats on the council.

These comprise the sitting members, Messrs H. W. Bennett, A. T. Stevenson and D S. Goulding, and Mrs J. E Woodham, Messrs C. A. Brears, A. L. S. Burgess, M McConnell and C. K. Patel. In the Broadfleld riding, there will be a contest for the one seat between Mr J. U Barclay, the sitting member, and Mr A. N. Colman. All three ridings of the former Halswell county are contested, indications being that feeling over the county district planning scheme will be a factor in the voting. For the Halswell county town riding, the sitting member, Mr J. Y. Pethig, is opposed by Mr R. S. Leach. The Halswell rural seat lies be tween the sitting member, Mr P. Wynn-Williams and Mr J. A. Coakley, and for the Tai Tapu riding, Mr G. B. Harty, a leading figure in the planning controversy, is opposing the sitting member, Mr D. P. Graham. The county formerly elected four members of the Central Canterbury Power Board on a county basis. This year, the election is split between three districts. Two sitting members, Messrs Manion and L. P. Griffith, were elected unopposed for the rural district. An Interesting position has

developed for the Hornby , district’s one seat on the 1 board, because two sitting ' members, Mr Stevenson and , Mrs Woodham, are, by acci- , dent of residence, contesting i it, along with Messrs Gould- I ing and J- Matheson. No sitting member was eligible for the Sockburn district, where the candidates are Messrs K. R. Ramsay and N. G. Spiers. Not Resident The council is concerned that the members who will represent it on the Transport and Drainage boards will not be resident in the county, but has not gone as far as Waimairi county in backing the candidature of its own councillors. Mr J. K. Dobson, the sitting member for the Drainage Board, is well known as the manager of a large industry at Hornby, although he does not live in the county. His opponent, Mr G. W. Lowrie, lives at St Albans. Contestants for the Papa-rua-Heathcote seat on the Transport Board are the board’s present chairman, Mr J. R. Smith, who lives at St Andrew’s Hill, and Mr R. C. Ashby, whose home is at Aranui. All three candidates for the combined Paparua-Waimairi seat on the Catchment Board I live within the district. The I sitting member, Mr F. L. I Wright, and Mr A. C. Mad■dock, are Waimairi residents, and Mr R. H. Mackenjzie is a Paparua resident. There are three vacancies on the Hornby Licensing Trust, for which Messrs E. Nicholas and G. H. Woods are competing with three sitting members, Messrs A. L. S. Burgess, D. S. Goulding, and A. T. Stevenson. It is important that the Halswell urban electors on the : special roll prepared for the | occasion vote on whether to join the Drainage Board district or not. The board can take over the Halswell sewerage scheme only if the area is brought into its district. If Halswell votes to stay out, the sewer costs are likely to be doubled for the people concerned.