The Evening Star SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1927. LOCAL GOVERNMENT SYSTEM.

Evening Star, Issue 19712, 12 November 1927, Page 6

The Evening Star SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1927. LOCAL GOVERNMENT SYSTEM.

Pkodably there is no one in Now Zealand, and certainly no one in the Legislature, who has the length of view and comprehensive outlook on New Zealand politics that is possessed by Sir Robert Stout, Ho was Prime Minister before Sir Joseph Ward first approached the political hustings. He has been in the battle, watched from above the battle, and now once more is alongside the battle. He has seen the colony pass from a provincial system to representative central government, and has seen the latter develop for fifty years. Apparently he now envisages a further step in our political evolution, some form of decentralisation on the one hand and combination of small governmental units on the other. The Legislative Council is now debating a motion by him—“ That, in the opinion of the Council, Cabinet should consider in the recess the need of remodelling our local government machinery in the direction .of establishing district councils, with wide powers over large areas, so that centralised government and its growing cost may not bo increased, but that real economy and efficient local selfgovernment may bo promoted and strengthened.” We hope that Sir Robert’s motion will he passed, and that this important matter of local government reform will be given by Cabinet in the recess the consideration it undoubtedly deserves.

The history of local government in New Zealand is an interesting one. Starting from nothing, working in a small isolated insular area, the colony has been able, as population increased, settlement extended, and additional resources enabled other needs to be met, to build up gradually its present complex system of local government. Along with the provinces, a few boroughs and town districts were created in 1876—36 in all, to be exact—l 9 of which were in Otago. From 1663, also, road or highway districts were formed, each with its elected board, there being 314 of these by 1875. An original idea of dividing the colony into counties, hundreds, and parishes on the old English plan was only carried out in one county, that of Eden, and then aban-

dbned,' The Counties Act, 1876, which, along with the Municipal Corporations Act of the same year, provided a comprehensive scheme of local government in lieu of the provincial-governments, divided New Zealand into 63 counties. Many of the previously numerous road districts were gradually merged into the counties within which they lay, while others became boroughs find town districts. All these latter have, of course, increased considerably in number. there being at present no fewer than 129 counties, 119 boroughs, and 69 town districts;

At the same time, to provide for special needs not precisely'met by any of these three divisions, several entirely new classes of local districts have come into existence. Such are river and harbor districts, those for land drainage or city and suburban drainage, hospital, and electric power districts. and a number of others of lesser importance, yet with considerable powers. Each has its board. And there are no fewer than nearly 400 of them in existence to-day. Truly, we are a much-governed country. There is some satisfaction, however, in the fact that at least we govern ourselves. Most of these districts are created by a petition of a certain proportion of the ratepayers, and the board is elected in the usual way, either by the ratepayers or by the electors generally. Some have been constituted by special enactment, as were the counties themselves. The majority have the power of levying rates, and in many cases of raising loans to carry out the functions they perform. A point to notice, in the formation of many of these districts, is that in most cases they relieved boroughs and especially counties of certain work—e.g., the provision of electric power—which was too expensive for a small county to provide, or for other reasons was best carried out in a larger district, [(’ho latest example of the working of this principle is, ol course, the creation of the 18 district councils of the Main Highways Board in 1922, The advent of the motor vehicle made 1 it impossible for a poor county or small borough to maintain its roads efficiently for general traffic. Probably it is councils of this nature, with much wider functions, that Sir Robert has in view in his remodelling. Here is certainly a precedent which, if it has not yet given entire satisfaction, seems well in the way to perform better the task of keeping up the main highways. Already, too, in some parts there lias been talk of the need of the merging of two or three of the smaller counties into one larger one; and the same process lias actually occurred in Canterbury with regard to the smaller poiver boards. The two things aimed at by a remodelling of local. government are a decrease in centralised government and an increase in economical and efficient local self-government. The need of the former was emphasised in the House recently by Sir Joseph Ward. Ho complained of the “ frightful centralisation now prevailing in regard to public matters,” especially as regards competition by local bodies for money for public works. He believed the reverting to some system of district councils would get rid of this excessive centralisation. A Christchurch eontemporary, speaking of this, stresses the need of an independent development hoard. We presume this would have district councils on the lines of the present Main Highways Board. There aro not wanting many other critics of centralisation in various spheres. Tse case for producing more economy and efficiency in local government by district councils remains to be proved. But it is not hard to see that some degree of combination of all the various boards, running into hundreds, which we now have, might easily render considerable saving possible. Any change that takes place is not to be set about in a burry. The good work done in.the past by numerous local bodies towards the development of tho dominion merits the highest praise. But there are considerable indications that a further step in tho administrative evolution of the country is ncfS’ due, and tho discussion initiated by Sir Robert Stout should have real value in eliciting views on it.