CABINET DECIDES

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 47, Issue 2666, 6 September 1937, Page 5

CABINET DECIDES

AMALGAMATION PLAN THREE HOSPITAL BOARDS APPROVAL ANNOUNCED THAMES - WAIHI - COROMANDEL. Amalgamation of the Thames, Coromandel and Waihi hospital districts on the lines of the recommendations of the Commission which sat in Paeroa last December was approved by Cabinet last week, according to an announcement made by the Minister of Health, Mr Peter Fraser, on Friday. He added that the Order-in-Council giving effect to this decision would be issued shortly. The .decision of the Government is a sequel to the Commission, Mr F. H. Levien, S.M., which found in favour of the amalgamation of the three districts. The Commission sat in Paeroa on December 15 and 16 and at Waihi on the afternoon of December 16, and heard evidence from the constituent local authorities of each hospital district and from others, interested. The report was compiled by Mr Levien on January 13 and was released for publication on March 22, the Gazette publishing* the finding very fully at the time. Building At Paeroa ?

Among the recommendations was one which caused much controversy—the one which advocated the building of a main institution at Paeroa and including part of the Piako county and the Te Aroha borough’ in the amalgamated district. The contention. of the Waihi Hospital Board, backed by the Waihi Chamber of Commerce, that the Waihi hospital district should be enlarged to take in some of the Ohinemuri county, was not entertained by the Commission.

Since the issue of the report the Coromandel board has opposed strenuously the amalgamation proposal, and has made representations to the Minister urging that Coromandel should be excluded from the’ merger contemplated.

CHAIRMAN’S OPINION

SPIRIT OF CO-OPERATION board and the department. When the decision of Cabinet was referred to the chairman of the Thames Hospital Board, Mr P. E. Brenan, this morning, he stated that he could say little regarding it. The Thames board would act in the spirit of co-operation with the department and would administer all districts with equal consideration. No information as to how the combined district would be administered had been received, Mr Brenan added. He expected that both Waihi and Coromandel would send representatives to the Thames board on the same basis as the present board was constituted —population and valuation — and that the representation would be determined by the Valuation Department. In connection with the staffs employed by the three present boards, Mr Brenan could give no forecast of the position. Those details would have to be worked out later on.