FIRE BRIGADES BILL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 22, 21 October 1907, Page 11

FIRE BRIGADES BILL.

DEPUTATION TO THE,ATTORNEY GENERAL. PROTESTS FROM THE CHIEF CENTRES. v : ACT MAY, BE MADE PERMISSIVE. i The; Hoiu' Dr.. 3. '.' G. '.'. Findlay,', Attorney- ■ Goneral, received yesterday an important deputation: on the subject of the Firo Brigades Bill, which is now in circulation. The chief centres of,,tho. Dominion were represented— Wellington by the (Hon. T. W. Hislop), the Town -Clerk and :members of thb City Council, and the, local' members of Parliament; Auckland by Messrs. -Kidd, Baumo, and Poole.-M.H.R.'s; Cluistclmrcli by Mr. C. M. Gray, M;H.ll.; ; Dmiedin by Mr. G. London (Mayor),-and Mr: T. K.Sidoy,' M.H.R.; and Piiliriorstdri North by Mr. W. T. Wood m.h.r./ /;' : ',/... .. ■• ■'•■ . .'. •/wellington objections. 'The Mayor (Hon. T. W. Hislojj) gave expression to the objections entertained against the proposed legislation by the local .City,. Council. He said thp Council thought tho, Act should bo permissive in the four, chief cities,. as well as in the smaller places.; |If that were so, ho believed Wellington would bo very.pleased to be exempted from its operation. The Council did not seo the necessity of the Boards having to obtain tho consent of:thb-Minister before borrowing.money. They thought the consent of the local-authority should be required to any exchange .of property, effected by. a Board. The powers of tho-. Boards to make by-laws regulating . the storage Jof inflammable substances and tho'installation of : electric services would bo likely-to ('conflict with similar powers already -'exercised by'the municipalities.- It. was-feared-akp. that the .new.'legislation would give volunteer, fire brigades their qiuotus.. ';' Tlio ;cla'uso relating ..to, property might, in some .■'cases, -lead to ."a- street.- on which a building was 'temporarily* placed being vested, in 'a'.Board.;.He submitted,that only, tho, plant/and 'personal property should .bo rested in .the Boards, and tho land and build-. irigsksho'uKl'.'bo leased to them. . Andthor objection to the. property, proposals Bill lay.in"the -.'fact, that, in "Wellington, for-in-stance,,isonits of the fire station buildings wero .subje'ct,.td,a ldah, which they had shared with other'municipal enterprises/. The matter would, bo.,very, difficult.to adjust. The per-; sonal property. should be .paid.'for. whon acquired .by. the .Boards,- Ho.hoped.somo pro-. visidn would boinade ( so that persons should npt-be tempted to effect insurances,with companies outside, the Dominion : which were not subject to tho. burdens 'imposed "by''this legislation upon tho local . Another ofc-jectiou-was that, people who, wero not insured wo\ild gain protection .'against.'.fire, partly at the, expense:of those, who had insured.' The Government contribution should.be/at least' one-fifth of the total revenue of the Board.. .- !.:/.'■'..■':■:OTHER CRITICISMS.. ~.. •'. /, 1 Tbe''''Mnyor'-- l of.-Dunedin-'(Mr. G. Loudon); Messrs. F. E. Baume, W, T. ! Wood, C. M. Gray, and A. Kidd also criticised the Bill. : ..DJ.-I'INDLAY'S REPLY.;,;, : Tlie Attorney-General said that .all the Government was "aiming "'at was increased 6tticiei]cy;,m, fire, prevention... , If ~the Bill would not, in the opinion \p! those, who, like the ; Jiiembcrs of. tho local governing authorities"Vnie'ro .best qualified to judgo,','sorvo. that' purpdso, the Bill must go.','.He felt suro:.tho Government .was to-,,consider' the ideji-pOf-making'it permissive , .or even abaudoiiing it'- altogether,', and; i% repfiiling '",'. last year's Acti' Did 'they,'really ''waiit.' tho : < Act tp.'ijo .repealed?',;,»,, ■-■ '■'..'', V. /... ."...'! '■. A'.oice's:_ '.'Yes.,".' '..-,.. .■''.■' ..."'',-. '. .' : ' Did,.they not believe, continued thp At-torney-Genera!,' .-..that'' j'Jihe ( ; y systein ,of. Fire Boards,,.Micji ~hjU'i J .^'^^''''^9)jessf)j),,rfpp had,.worked so .well.lit.: Queensland,. New' South. Walcs/.and .'South Australia, that an SuperintendontHugp had reepmmemted ;'its I adoptibii; an. this : -country— -A id, they:.;not. j.t,.cpuld be .made to, work well\here.?.. If they appealed to Australian ', experience,, they .would'try ,to . improve, the Act. .instead, of,, rtpealing'. it. ,If the|repr.esentativos.of.the. people of- WoUirigany. other "city insisted ' that ,'t-ho ( systcm would, riot .make...for;,increased- efficiency,.; and /that they, did iiot, w.i'iit'it, then itjwbuld.bo'wrong on the.part of:the Government to,force it upon them.; jf his colleagues with,.- ,-him, ...the . /.Government would.' make ' . theV .- measure .permissive. The .first, broad result ~of this 'legislation would be l to. halvoi.thoj cos.t of fire prevention',.to. tho local ; authorities. • \ Indeed, it would,be reduced., than half, for .besides "the.'payments of. the .'insurance com, panies' tlio Government would make contributions on a scale not yet definitely fixed. In regard to tho request that the Board's paymonts of: four per,' cent.' interest 'on property should be increased by way of a sinking ifund, so as to pay for the capital value ofJtho property, ho would bo prepared to adviso the/Governniont to adopt a scheme like that of the' Advances to Settlers Act,-under which; the principal was repaid in thirty-three years.- i.Tlie proposals of the;Bill as to Government contributions upon advice' received from the Wellington Fire Board. That-body suggested that tho Government should pay, as though it wero tho private owner of fall; tho Government ''buildings, in the,,city—on: the .samo, basis as' the, contribution vof thei Council was computed—and should- a|so pay,: at the. same' rate as jf .it worefan insuranco company. . That had beon worked.outias a; total:contribution of £412 for- Wellington, and ; ; tho .Government pro-posed-to givo £450.; .-In Auckland, the contribution .on :the basis 'mentioned would be £100, andrin; Ghristchureh less than'£loo. if,the proportion of representatives to contribution, was,; the only objection, the Government ; was prepared to withdraw its 'representative ron, the-Boards; Tho Government- had -fe!t K especially; after the evidence heard by the Statutes 'Revision Committee, that an-impartial'chairman, to hold the'balance ;-between-:tho t-lireo insurance' members and the three representatiyes of the Council, would bo almost a necessity. Ho thought the Government, nominee should bo the chairman; and , ' , should "be very carefully selected. ' , ■ ■'•■■ : - -. • 'Mr. Wood:. Will -tho Board ho compelled to pay.rent if there is'no transfer?■ .' Hon -/t )r - Findlay: I anr prepared' to arranso, tor, that.' ' " ' -'' •■ V : "• ' Pne'moro point was made by the Atto'rnnyiTeneral; He said that in addition to its direct, contribution to the Fire Boards, the Government had undertaken td pay an inspector. This would moan some hundreds '" y ™ T \ and t,lO PX l ,ort fSuperintendent Hugo perhaps) would bo able tn adviso all the Boards, so that they could bring matters quite up-to-date. If two or throe of tho cit.es dropped out, it would scarcnlv fc^na^ l,^ 100 * o,o^^.^ j' Alr ; f-. Sl'irtcliffe;said the AVollingt'on Fire Board (of .which ho js a member) tbou-ht the Government contribution should bo one-fifth or the total. ■ ' ■ j i\lr. Barber, M.ff.R., sa i d not favour ,tho ldeaof repealing the Act .; Mr; Hislop said ho thought the Act would be as' acceptablo' ,f ,t wero mado permissivo.