CRITICISM BY CITY COUNCIL

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 257, 28 July 1939, Page 5

CRITICISM BY CITY COUNCIL

Members Of Hospital Board Object

COMMENTS SAID TO BE UNSEEMLY

It ill-behoved another public body to give vent to such unseemly criticism, said Mr. W. J. Mason at a meeting of the Wellington Hospital Board last night, referring to comments about the board made at a meeting of the Wellington City Council. “The criticism meted out by the city council is altogether wrong,” continued Mr. Mason. “Members of the city council —that august body—should talk in Parliamentary language about the hospital board. One councillor said it would be better if the board were wiped out and that the council had to stand the odium and burden of the irresponsible actions of the hospital board. , _ , “It looks as though the hospital board is a set of congenital idiots. I don’t know whether we can officially take any notice of it. It is a too august body for us to criticize. The city council does not know ail the time that has been.spent on these various schemes and does not appreciate the things that come before us. During the year we have to attend some 113 meetings and give a vast amount of time to this particular work.” “I don’t think many of us are thinskinned about these things,” said Mr. A H. Carman. “We are getting quite used to it as a matter of fact. The city council seems to forget that the board is elected by the same people as elected them. They think we have not the same responsibility as they have simply because they happen to be the collecting channel. Hie hospital board will bear the blame in due course if it makes a mistake. They are worrying so greatly about rates and things that they blame us for things they cannot do themselves.” The chairman. Mr. Glover, said that the best answer was that the statements in themselves proved that the people who made them were more irresponsible than the hospital board. The people knew nothing of what they were talking about.