WAR FUNDS

Evening Post, Volume XCVI, Issue 140, 10 December 1918, Page 4

WAR FUNDS

SCHEME OF CONTROL,

The War Funds -Amendment Bill was considered by the House of Representatives'yesterday- afternoon." In moving the second reading the Hon. Gr. W; Russell explained the principal- provisions of the Bill, which have already been summarised-in The Post. The provision for the absorption of small funds by the National War Funds Council would only operate' .where the fund was lees than £500, or he> would alter the amount if members thought an alteration desirable. It was with a ,view to avoiding overlapping in expenditure and. crjsuring coordination that reports! were to be furnished to*the Repatriation Board. , Mr. J. P. Luke praised'the work.of the Minister and the Department in connection with ;the war fund. He was pleased that provision had been mad* for the absorption of small war .funds. Diy A. K. Newman viewed the BUI with apprehension, and \thought the" Minister, should riot; interfere with the funds. The people should be left to spend : the money as they desired. The Minister, in reply to a'question by Mr. Poole (Auckland West), stated that it was not intended to use the powers of this Bill to interfere with the work of any patriotic society; but there were one or two societies which required the control proposed by this part of the Bill._ _ He gave an assurance that in administration every consideration would be given to the work of patriotic societies. , , . The Bill was read a second time. In Committee the amount of funds which might be absorbed by.the National War Funds Council wae , reduced from £500 to £300. That a fund had been unlawfully established or augmented was added to the grounds for which the Supreme Court might establish schemes of administration. ■ ' In reply to Mr. C. J. Parr, the Minister stated that it was not /intended in any way to interfere with the patriotic societies by the clause imposing a restriction 1 on sending war funds out of New Zealand, but there was a very large sum in connection with a society which was not a patriotic society, over which it was desirable that there should be some control. , - In the Committee stage of the Bill in the Legislative Council the Hon. J. T. Paul asked for; a modification of the clause requiring an account of expenditure td be sent to the Repatriation Board. To send account 1 of all small grants having no relation to repatriation would involve great labour and serve no useful purpose. ; ' . Sir Francis Bel! said it was in many of the small items that overlapping must be guarded against. He undertook to have some limit put upon the return when the regulations were being framed, ■ The Bill was passed, without amendment. . '■'■■