DELEGATION TO MEET MINISTER

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 204, 26 May 1938, Page 15

DELEGATION TO MEET MINISTER

Request For State Subsidy

REPAIRING RESULTS OF YEAR’S FLOODS

Dominion Special Service.

Napier, May 25.

A delegation from the Hawke’s Bay County Council consisting of the chairman, Mr. C. C. Smith, Cr. AV. Tucker and ths engineer, Mr. R. Pufleet, will go to Wellington in the near future to place before the Minister of Public Works, Hon. R. Semple, the county’s case for a Government subsidy to assist in making good flood damage. There was some uncertainty to-night about when Mr. Semple would be able to receive the delegation, but it is possible that the Minister will receive it on Friday morning. At to-day’s meeting of the council the chairman, Mr. C. C. Smith, said if the county had to undertake the work unaided it would prove an almost insupportable burden on the ratepayers. He was confident the Government would help. It was desirable, however, to learn at the earliest moment what the Government was prepared to do, as without this information it would be difficult to frame estimates.

Cr. R. Harding said the policy of the county in living within its income and showing a credit balance of £9OOO was now bearing fruit. Many ratepayers in the past had opposed this policy, but they would now realise where the county would have been to-day without a credit balance. The surplus of £9OOO had already been spent on flood repair work. Cr. E. H. Beamish said it was important that the Government be approached before the estimates were framed in order to give the county an idea how far it could go. Personal Interview Preferred.

Crs. C. Lassen. AV. Tucker and C. C. Smith all stressed the wisdom of sending a delegation rather than try to achieve the aim by letter. Past experience proved thgt a personal interview was more satisfactory. The chairman stressed the importance of each riding member supplying the engineer with an estimate of the damage to date. Cr. Beamish said the delegation should not overlook damage caused in the January and February floods. The Anzac Day flood caused serious damage to repair work undertaken after the previous floods. The report to be placed before the Minister should be a comprehensive one, covering the whole of the flood damage caused this year.