HARBOUR CONTROL.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 597, 27 August 1909, Page 5

HARBOUR CONTROL.

REPRESENTATIVE-BASIS. • WELLINGTON BOARD'S-SCHEME. VIEWS THE MEMBERS. ' "The constitution of haib6ur||boaids is #. very live subject in New Zealand, to-day," said the chairman'of the Wellingjxjn Harbour Board (Mr. T. M. \Yilford, M.P.), in placing before his fellow-members yesterday tho following recommendations of tho Wharves and rAccounts Committee:— . To request the Minister for Marino'to ■■■': recast tho • constitution of the Wellington Harbour Board on the following lines-• , '-.L That tho board shall consist of four- •,: . teen members. ■ i . .2. That tho Mayor of the City of Wd- ' lington bo no longer an. ex-officio member. ;, 3;' That five-members bo 'elccted to represent tho City of Wellington jointly with tho Boroughs of Onslow ; Karon, ■■■• and Miramar. 4. That tho above five members be • r .elected on tho municipal; franchise. 5. That ono member be elected by tho companies,} firms, persons and others who • - \ have rseveifally paid to tho bosrd £3 or- • upwards of harbour duos in respect to v snips during tho year ended 3]st day of - December [last preceding tho election. < :• . 6. That.'ono member bo elected by tho ' companies', firms, persons and others who " ■ havo soVorally; paid'to tho board £3 or 'upwards of harbour duos other than dues .' in respect of ships during the year ended • • tho 31st' day 'of December last preceding.the. election. 7. That one member bo fleeted by ■,' delegates from the Boroughs of Petone,M,' ; Lower Hutt, and Eastbourne, tho town I' districts of Johnsonvillo and : Upper Hutt, and the counties of . Hutt and • Makara,, and from any counties, bor-- > oughs, or 1 town districts hereafter to bo constituted within or from tho said counties. j;: . •' •■■ '. . 8. That l two'members bo elected by ' delegates from the: counties of Wai- 'v<v , rarapa South, -'Masterton, Pahiatua, . 1 ::> Akitio, Eketahuna,' Mauricovillo, Castle- ; faiut,"' Featfherstori, tho town district of \ patherston and ' Martinborongh, and tljo Boroughs of Greytown; Carterton,. . . Masterton, Ekot'ahuna,'and Pahiatua, and from any counties, boroughs, or town , districts hereafter to' b6: constituted within or'from the said comities. 9. That two members bp elooted by ; delogates from tho counties of Mannwatu, Orona,, Horowhonua, Pohangina,'.• Kairanga, Kiwitea, and the Boroughs of. ' Palmerston North; Feilding, Fojrton, and Levin, and from any cotintics, boroughs, or town districts hereafter to be consti- ; tuted within or from tho said - 10. That two members' bo nominated l > , by tho Governor. ;; Tho Chairman's Vlaws. ' Commenting ,on "• the' ; abovo schcmo, thai . ; (Chairman said he believed the franchise for-tho election of members of har-". bour , boards would eventually be adopted.) .: Ho believed in Jt . himself, but; thought it/ must.be brought about: gradually. 1 ' Ho would) , support the committee s proposals, though- - he would have been prepared for a ..; moro. radical scheme. He oould not sco why a man who -was' fit'.to vote for, a. member of J .. Parliament should riot, be regarded- as fit to.. ■■■■'■• vote for a member of a harbour board.. How-;, ever,' on the'ground of the oxpen&o ■of holding elections , ion the . Parliamentary basis*': \ especially where. different' Parliamentary ■ rolls Would,! have to 'be used owing to tbo\ overlapping -of districts, he would support , the compromisereocommended by tho com*mittee. The- recent' .election Messrs*,Fletchor.and Bolton to the board-cost £142,.;., and election on a broader franchise would have' cost , much more;'Tho representation of tho city ,on a Parliamentary basis could bo, more easily -effected, but he did riot see how . , : it could bo done ■in the'country, where on® 1 1 harbour district comprised two or threeelectorates, without an- expense that would ; not bo warranted. Even if tho Parliament-' ary rolls were to bo used for the city, there ■ would'bo four rolls to amalgamate, and th* -... Suburbs roll would have to'be split up.' ■

Who' Would Pay? . Tho Minister, for Marine had suggested that tho. local bodies should. bear the ex- - pehses involved, ]iut that was doubtless only -, an excuse for shifting tho ,burden from the, ■ Government; ' Tho idea of 1 the board's committee 'was to mako the basis of reprosenta«' tion broader for the city, and to leave ifj l > as at present for th<j country districts, but 1 1 . to give them ' two • moro mombers, increasing ~ ■ tho total membership of the board to 14, ( and wiping out 1 , the .ex-offido position of thai.: Mayor of Wellington. • Tho 1 . use of thoj municipal rolls could T» more easily workod? than that of the 'Parliamentary rolls,; because municipal rolls would bo available for; . the whole of the-; district;.which the commit-'l , tee proposed includ6 in the WcUington* '. representation;: 1 On tho question of ; r6pro»",x ; sentation on 1 tho': Parliamentary franchise, lie : was, personal opinion, and. . . not speaking on behalf- of the. committee. .In regard to Clauses s..and' 6, tlieso wero, open to cntifcisin, .'but spmo f schemo must be put before the-GoVerriment,. and the board , could amend 'these' proposals; Ho;>. persbnally, thought—though hinifiolf a Government -m I nominee—that ', the Government should not, I reguirc representation,. as iW'interests were V«I luily safeguarded by legislation. The. board ■- j, hftd> to ypbtain Gbyernmcnt approval -for such r-,-worki-'as the Waterlob Quay culvert, -the. v concrete wall; at: Miramar, and tho- new J (3hed<v: 1 , ~, >In reply to -Mr. Darnell, the chairman said . ; tlio schemo was not exactly. in. line with tho. - Government's ideas/ as tho Government contemplated tho uso- of tho Parliamentary roll oven in. country.district®. .-■■■ ' -..>

. . Claims of Hutt District. Mr. J. -W.' M'Ewan seconded tho motiort < pro forma, - but claimed a larger sharo of representation for the Petono and Hutt district, mentioned in Clause 5, wliilo the city had fivo members. , ' He oontended that the . city- should only have-two members 1 if the - . §aye-rs of dues .on, ships .and tho payors of,, , ues. on merchandise had also one member ; each,;, Tho proposal of the committee Would •' virtually give the.city seven members,-.and as the Government , would doubtless. appoint a Wellington resident as one of its, nominees there would benight Wellington- members. The representation should bo on a popuktion basis, which! would'give Y tho Hutt dis-. / trict two members, tho Manawatu and Wai- - rarttjia bodies threo'members ,oaoh, : city two members'.' That would leave two to /; ,bo nppointed .by the; Governor .and two by , the payers of dues. Twelve Mombers Sufficient., : ' Mr. R. Fletcher sprecd with , tho chairman as to tho desirability, and also the difficulty, of election on tho Parliamentary basis. He recognised that the Government should have nominees on some harbour beards, like Westport, but hp thought there should not :.-• ba a Government nominee on the Wellington Botrd. Tho Government,' however,, would probably, insist on hiving representation. t Ono member should represent tile payers of dues and owners of sliips together. Ho wo\ild suggest the following al- ' location of memberß:---Wollington,. 4; Petono, Lower Hutt, K-arori, Miramar, Eastbourne, "and Onslow, 2; Wairarapa, 2r Government, 2; total, 12. If, > Knrori, Miramar, and Onslow w-oro takon •• out of tho; Wellington district, and added tq , the Hutt, district, reducing tho city ropro. sentation to 4, tlioro would bo n donsulop, able saving in t-lio cost of election. H< contended that 12 members, as at proscoit( would bo quite sufficient. Against tho Parliamentary Basis.

Mt. J.' G. said .he objected strongly to tlio underlying principle of ■ the • resolution. ,Ho know of' no effort on' tbc part ofv boawls to' niterj their constitution, and. thought: . suoh a thing was. wrong fn principlo. Ho.Jiad yot to loarn that tho boards bad done bad wbrk> or that thero ,wna any , ovidoncp to show that thov required to, lw reconstituted. Tho Btiggostion that a man who was lit. to vote for a mombor of Parliament 1 was necessarily fit':'.to voto for'a 1 member of a Harbour Bottrd wras question- ■ abk) V Hftfboar BoMd had to doal.

i " r with business interests, and a Parliamantary 'eleotor who understood general politics £-. > might not understand , business problems. {■ Thoro was '-also: in the general government, {if;i ■;:Y ■ a system' of - safeguards; in the: form .of the !■/:.' bi-cameral . system : and . the review _ of. ir ; / . 'measures by 'his Majesty's representatives. { The principle; of the .Parliamentary franchise j\ was unsafe, also, on the ground that no f, • • question of taxation was involved in the p.;■management -<of . the v baTbour... The share- • holders of a great buauiessf.would not give 1 . the-goneral publio the,., right to eleot the 5 ■ directors. Ho agreed with Mi. M'Ewan that -the xommittee'syscheme. would give Welling-1 f- 1 ?ton .oitytoo large a share.of representation. ' .Three members. should suffice.-for ;tho,city, I j ■:, ■ and- he - would support, a' - much:; stronger . country representations All the exports came from the country, *, ' s , . ■ covernmont Representation, Objeotad To. ' Mr P G Bolton 4 agreed with Mr. •' • , Fletcher's views. The representation.should be,- as far- as possible,-, a popular one, and •the Parliamentary' rolls would be 1 tho :ibest if practicable; He was prepared: to support the ' use- of- the municipal l roll, solely- on the r..- . - • ground of expense. Lie 1 ' did -not think that st ■ • tho l payers >of •. dues,-, being ouetymers of 1 tho -. 1 ' board, should - have any representation. .The r, 1 !v Hutt-district :(Clause 7) should have, .on a '; / population; bails, a .member, and ■ a 'third,- > and this would mean, practically, one member. -He objected - to Government representation, c.;" ,: but -recognised that it was useless.'to oppose S'iv_. - it-''.-The -peoplo of- tho -district,' and not-the commercial -classes • only, were interested.* as a"-\consumers, in -the. successful. administration of the port. > >- < 1 A Country sVlow. , 1 Mr.' M. Cohen said 'the proposals :of, the |S9\!:; ; aXcouiitry^representative. Ho 'was opposed to the ParJia- ><\ : "inentary franchise.- "Experience: showed that . ■ ■!. the:■ electors would bo apathetic, - and would v■■■'.-■■ elect men'not so much for business tajlacity 'ir.-r ' as!for. goneftl-popularity,: or willingness - to make-concessions to;oertam interests., The :. customers of the. board had as much right to representation a3 tho electors, if not [i"->T:-i'.:V.'.inorei.'.'''- , lf-tho: board.: would: work.less .as a <■ local body, and: m,oro as a business institution, ' v< the results would bo better'. Tho good,-people of Wellington Were'rather apt to fancv that the port belonged' to them, but. really 1 .the :..' -'i juxtaposition of -the. city and tho port waa < - r : - ' accidental, . and should not -. allowed to ■ interfere with the just interests of-tho country distnets. , , !; !, •: In the course of further discussion,,,the i: , chairman defended Clauses 5 and 6< on .tnt| ground that one representative for all payers of dues had an impossible task in that, he lad to represent conflicting; interests. After •hearing tho - discussion, he .wondered -how •those clauses had ever reached the board. .!. : Jt must have been becauso the whole scheme • Was-a seriestof compromise.. The Huttdis-, ■:t- - "-'.'-'-'''' : -trict- , was- ,^ntitled-.:td,''two, ?members on ac- , count 'of its largo . foreshore, interests. Re- : : plying to Mr. .Harkness's argument from the • • bi-cameral system, the chairman pointed out that the board-had its committees for the ' ; ■ preparation of business. Tho Schema as Approved. Tho clauVes were put to* the tfote separately,. and several amendments were moved, the scheme . finally approved ''by the boara • being as follows "< " Members. Wellington City v r . . 3 - , Payers of dues. on merchandise ... .1- ;... Payers of-dues on ships ... ... 1 . Hutt district; as defined in Clause -'. - - 5, Tilth the addition of Karori, Miramar, and Onslow (.. 2 Wairarapa . 2 Manawatu , '. 2 Government nominees ... 2 ■ Total ... - ...13 =..:■■-!■" The basis of representation to be as orijinally recommended by the committee. As at -present constituted, the board com- : - \ 1 ;: prises three- Government -nominees,■ two mem- ' bers elected by the ratepavers ■ -of' -Welluigi v.. -- ton, one by"the ■ payers of ' dues • and owners ,of ships, onu each by the districts of Hutt ; .■:with' SubUrliSj l -''Wairarapa - and and one by the 'Welhngton Chamber of Com- . . merce/while the Mayor 'of -Wellington ' holds a seat ex officio. 1 • .