Labour backs reform stand

Press, 4 March 1978, Page 5

Labour backs reform stand

The stand by the Mayor of Christchurch (Mr H. G Hay) on bringing coun cillors out in the open on | local-body reform has beei supported oy the Laboui Party. “We welcome the Mayor’; attempts, however belated to put his Citizens’ Association’s house in order t< l translate years of. pious I platitudes into co-operative action,” said Cr Mollie Clark, leader of the City Council’s Labour members. In the past, positive attempts by Labour to explore the matter had been (“greeted with howls and backward steps to evade, rather than front up to, the need to minimise the frustrating fragmentation and maximise efficiency and economy of local bodies,” Cr Clark said. “Could the Mayor also urge his colleagues in the

National Government, who lismantled the effective and videly approved Labour Government’s framework for ocal-body reform, to stop .hying away from the many •pl inter ed problems?” she said. Cr Clark admitted that tome Citizens’ Association nembers had often talked ibout reform, “but they tave never fallen over backwards to do anything about it.” Some councillors in surrounding local authorities “prefer to be big fish in little seas, and they are blocking it for selfish reasons,” she added. Most councillors who were vocal Labour supporters or leaned toward Labour were “not so troubled by a lack of enthusiasm” on the reform issue.