COUNTY RATEPAYERS

Grey River Argus, 3 June 1937, Page 4

COUNTY RATEPAYERS

AND HIGHWAYS COSTS Mr. Semple’s Viws (Per Press Associatim). GISBORNE, May 31. A denunciation of the old scheme of things whereby' the construjtion and maintenance of the main highways was a liability on County Coujciis, was made by the Minister of Public Works, Hon. R. Semple, at Gisbornl on Sat‘ urday. j Speaking to a deputation representative of the Cook County Council ratepayers, he said: ‘'lt was a colossal blunder ever to hive asked the CouiitieS' of "this cotintrjf' to pay money towards main highways.” To' that policy the Min;«:ir attributed the plight of many- of 1 e counties throughout the Dominion n being unable to find any money' for secondary and back block roads. The Minister said th e Govirnment had taken over 2000 miles (f highways last year, and, as a res It,, had saved the ebun’ties £200,000 The counties never should have, bee i called upon to pay money' for highw ys. . He continued: “Main arteri.l highways ar e not a county liabili y any more than railways are. bounties should never have been asked to pay. It was a eollossal blunder eer to have asked the counties to pay money toward main highways. If tiat had not been done, the countie; would have money' to spend on conn y roads to-day. There were hundreds ,f farmers stuck in the mud”. “We ar e trying to patch up thd mistakes of the past,” deehred the Minister. ‘ ‘lt was a political blunder of the greatest magnitude. 1 am not going to suggest that a review of these liabilities will not take placs. They will be reviewed some day'. TTnless we have som e other system of construction and maintenance for roads; those farmers who have been stuck in the mud for years will stay in the mud. To leave the farmer there, in not only means hamstringing him, but prevents him from taking the tota possible production from his property, and that automatically affects the nation, as a whole, As soon as I got an opportunity. I gave the maximum relief possible at the time. Th e flight the counties are in to-day wasj brought about by their being saddled with a burden that they should never have been asked t 0 carry,” the j Minister concluded.