LABOUR AT MIRAMAR.

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 92, 21 April 1925, Page 8

LABOUR AT MIRAMAR.

Messrs. ,J.. M'Kenzie, R, M'Keen, j M.P.. rand; R.. Semple/and v Mrs^ Snow addressed electors at Miramar last evenMr."MTCenzie dealt with the promises and performances of Members of the re-tiring-council. _ He claimed for the Corporation employees'-"that"' they rendered efficient and faithful service- to the city, citing the saving of £19,000 on the Hutt road paving job as evidence of efficiency of both the manual'workers'and the engineering staff employed by the city. He claimed that.reducing wages and making worse working conditions was a poor busjness^jtolicy, and one not calculated to jprodnce the best results, to say nothing^ef 'its unfairness;-He- claimed that the,po]icy of .the Labour Party was in line; evolution of civic government, and asserted that there was nothing advocated in the party's municipal platform..'that was not in successful operation''in the.cities of Britain or the British Colonies, although- some of the Civic- -League candidates appeared to have no knowledge of what was being aonrf ejsewhere. . ..: . .

*%• en dealt with the question of the-city leases and the return which the .city.received from .'them.. He claimed that if Jthe .cents were, fixed on the basis of present-values; ;and according to what was: being paid by the tenants of pVorJetty/ not owned by. the city, the return-should be niore than double what it was at present. That would mean that the rates could be correspondingly, reduced. "He asserted that it was unfair to Civic League candidates and that they would -Lie in a, false position, if returned to the .pnuriHl..to find themselves charg- • ed ;wl(ir the duty of ''fixing the rents tobe paid by prominent members of the league .which was striving to secure their election. .

Jlrs Snow ur^ed the electors to return women representatives to the Hospital Board, as they were best fitted to protect, the interests of the women and children who. came before tho board. She expressed' herself a3 being strongly opposed to the policy pursued by the board in handing the business of collecting arrears From patients to a debt collecting ageircjv _ .She ..claimed that the policy puT3ued*was discreditable to the board, and that if "the electors realised -what this policy meant they would insist on it being changed immediately. Mr. Semplo dealt with the housing question, ' and stated that members of the retiring council appeared to have no knowledge of the conditions under which the^ majority of the citizens were living. Thsir ignorance, .he maintained, disqualified them from representing the.citi-y.ens..-3je!jstated that it was well within the power of the council to assist mater-' ially'ih "helping to solve-the housing

; problem at- no cost to the ratepayers, (providing that it realised its responsibilities and tackled the job in the same spirit as the Hutt road paving scheme was tackled. He also dealt with the question ■of an adequate water supply for the higher levels of the city, and asserted that, owing to want of foresight and loose management, the citizens were paying interest oil the money borrowed to put the Orongorongo tunnel throsgh, although it would be years before they got any benefit from it, as the necessary mains for conveying the water to t the city were not yet laid It ■appeared that the council had not realised that mains would be necessary until the tunnel was actually through, yet the' men responsible for this blunder appealed to the electors on the ground that they were efficient and experienced business men.

■ Labour candidates and speakers will ■address-the following meetings to-night: ■_" Khandallah Anglican Hall—Messrs. A. i- Monteith, M.P., J. Roberts, R Semple,- and Mrs. M. Stables. .■.St.'. .Luke.'s, 'Wadestown—Messrs.- C B. Chapman, J. Glover, E. M'Keen, :M.^:.'-and Mrs. S. Snow. _ Todman street, Brooklyn—Messrs. W T. Young, .T. Brindle, L. Hennessey, ;and J. Thorn.

. rWaitoa -road, Hataitai—Messrs. P Fraser, M.P., J. M'Kenzie, W. Smith! h Wover, and A. W. Croskery. _ On Wednesday evening Labour meetings will be held at th,e; following places: Karon Council Chambers Molesworth street,. Methodist Hall, Wellington road, Kilbirnie, . Milton road, Berhampore.

On Thursday Labour candidates will N? ea£, *? f°llows:-St. Anne's Hall, Northland, Owen and Constable streets Hawkestone and Molesworth streets' Wallace _ street terminus, and Roxburgh and.Majonbanks streets.