PETONE'S MUNICIPAL FINANCE.

Evening Post, Volume LXVIII, Issue 61, 9 September 1904, Page 6

PETONE'S MUNICIPAL FINANCE.

THK MAYOR IN DEFENCE. R«cen6 critictsimi o! Perone's municipal nnanco provoked a reply from tho Mayor (Mr. Q. London) at tho Borough Council meeting last night. He stated that the overdraft was a heritage from prerion« Councils, but with the >*atisfac' tory arrangement*) tho Council coukl make very few people would object to pay the very small amount of intenwt it represented as against tho eounterrafling difference of lid in the general rwte. The reduction of the general rate from Is 2d to la o£d did not represent a >.•>* volume of rates available to tlu« Council. Upon the new valuation they got £153 8s more than they would get from Is 2d on the former valuation. Iho actual incrcn«c in rates they wero asking khc ratepayers to pay under tho now valuation waa 7]d in tho £. Those who used gas were pnying f<l in the J3 more, and those who iu«ed water another 4d In tho £. ,Th<wfore, ■omo wero paying Is in the £ more, or an increase of nearly 50 per cent. This ccitra burden wns just as much as most of them could conveniently pay. It waa mere fustiaA to say bho poorer people would moro cheerfully pay oa or 4« additional, which was 'n* to them than £3 or £4 to the trealtiry people, lie said the position waa tke reverse. (Councillor Kidd : "Question!") Over £1000 more revenue would be received. (Councillor Kidd : "That does not count.") It did not count to those who did not take tho trouble to look into the matter fuHy. The prospect now was that jt>T th© end of the year they would havo ■*rh*e4*-ont' the- overdraft by £200, which 'woald mark a de«ire on tho Council** park to do moro than "keep steadily in view" the reduction of this debt. There waa iwr •ttHßculty- in ■KUwfying those peoplo wUc-'CoaM- be- satisfied that the position of the "borough was a Very strong one finamoiaHy. (Hear, hear). Councillor Mncfarlnno deprecated tho •ta£eniont that those who tailored from thtT Mrtyor had not gone- into the qu* tian. No one denied that the finances tho boriwgh were sonnd. One thing tht opponentn of iho reduction in the goYiornl xate contended wim tluxt the expcnsci in connection with the Hutt-road — a woric for a tew year* only — should bo borno out of reveiMie, and not by a loan whose burckm vrowW fall on those- who wofcld «st no benefit triiatover from the expenditure. Ht> oombatod die statement that there w«a an increase of 7Jd in the £. People, knew full well thero wero extra conveniences thoy vrolrid:have..'to p«.y. for. "He And those with him had sought to get a reduction m the overdraft, and he was not at all satisfied there would bo any reduction. .Councillor Castle said the Council was still well within ite estimated, which showed at .the end of the year £241 to sn&M. It wis recognised by most 'people that expenditure on the Hutt-road and on tfie Hutt Bridge would havo to be met by a loan — long or short. Councillor Nicholson entered his emphatic protest against the Mayor's reference to those who differed with him. Ho aim strongly objected to the remark of "mere fustian," and emphatically reiterated tho assertions so described by tho Mayor. On a previous occtwian tho Mayor hod said the de4ny that would be occasioned if Councillor Piper's amendment adhering to the old rate was carried would cost tho borough £50 to £100. -But that money was l>eing lost in any case, and he naked : Who is responsible ? As to the 7Jd referred to, peoplo wero getting corresponding benefits, and did nob mind paying for them. Replying to Councillor, .Nicholson's question, the Mayor said no moro blamo wm attachable to him than to Councillors I generally for the delay that had occurred. \ Councillor Kidd <lid not think that because a Connoiflor differed from the Mayor, he thereforo suffered from intellectual bankruptcy. It was quite dear the Borough vnts in a semi-state of insolvency so far ns doing any extra work at all went. He doubted very ( much if anything would be wiped off the overdraft this year. Aayhow, he did not intend to go to meetings and swallow anything the Chairman put before him bolus bolus. He denied die Mayor or nny one else tho right to dogmatise over him in any action he might take in bho Council. CpurwlHor Wakeham was endeavouring to pour oil on the troubled waters when Councillor Kidd said he thought the Mayor could defend himself. . Tho Mayor concurred, and in tho course of o. brief reply said he Wrought Councillor Kidd's utterances certainly suggested he had not fully appreciated the position. In reply to a question, tho Mayor said it was per- ' feotly feruo that fcho formalities in regard to making tho rates wcro boing gone j through again in consequence of a clorical error in the offico.