PUBLIC WORKS

Greymouth Evening Star, 8 August 1936, Page 14

PUBLIC WORKS

WEST COAST ROAD ASSET

[FEB PRESS ASSOCIATION.]

WELLINGTON, August 7. In the House, a statement by the Minister of Public Works on the Public Works programme was discussed. Mr. Forbes asked whether the Minister had worked out construction costs of future works. He knew the Minister was pinning his faith largely to machinery, but undoubtedly labour costs would be greatly increased compared with past costs. He asked what the extra costs were to be, and what legal authority the Minister had for starting works that had been commenced, for as far as he knew, there had been ho legislative authority. Mr. Hamilton said that farmers would not be able to compete with public works for farm labour. The Minister had said he would prevent men leaving farms for public works, but what steps did he intend to take to do it? He did not blame a man

for leaving one job for a better job, but the results might be serious if not checked. He asked the Minister what he proposed to do regarding the Haast Pass road and suggested the West Coast road should be taken right down to meet the Milford coast in Hollyford Valley. Mr. Semple: That is the scheme. Mr. Hamilton said he was glad to hear it.

Mr. Semple said it would make a magnificent scenic road. Mr. Hamilton said the views that were to be had from that locality would beat anything else in the world, and the work would be thoroughly justified. Such a road would be a great attraction, particularly to North Island motorists.

Mr. Semple said it was true that public works would cost considerably more under the increased wages scale. He could not give the total for New Zealand, but the increase on the Gisborne railway, Westport-Inangahua railway, and the South Island Main Trunk railway, would be about £573,000, but it had to be remembered they were big jobs and would take about three years to complete. He claimed that modern machinery would expedite the work, and ■s’a’ye overhead costs. It was not the intention of the Department to go from the sublime to the ridiculous fn public works, and throw thousands of men out of work. It was not proposed fully to mechanise public works, but to go as far as commonsense would allow them. Some people thought he was hard on those who would not work, but he had not been hard. He had twenty thousand men on public works, and the jobs they were doing would be of value to New Zealand, if

not now, some day. Some jobs would not have been put -in hand had it not been for the fact that men were on sustenance and for similai’ reasons. They had to select works that would be justified and would be of lasting value to New Zealand. He was convinced that the Westland road ■would be an asset not only to the South Island, but to New Zealand, and would attract people from overseas. The Department did not intend to start a stampede from farms to public works, and if he learned of any men who left farms to go to public works, the men would go back to the farm. It was not the intention of the Department to rob the farmer or any employer of his men. Mr. Dickie suggested that men working on relief jobs should be classified, so that if there was a demand for any class of labour those men could be used to fill it. Mr. Bodkin urged great provision should be made for irrigation works in the public works policy. Mr. Semple, who was granted leave of the House to speak a second time, assured the members that the Government was doing its utmost to improve back-country roads. Some million sterling would be spent this year,'compared with £450,000 last year. The question of irrigation had not been lost sight of. He assured the House that the Department would endeavour to get the best return possible for the money expended.