MUNICIPAL REPRESENTATION ON A POPULATION BASIS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CV, Issue 12423, 12 February 1901, Page 6

MUNICIPAL REPRESENTATION ON A POPULATION BASIS.

THE RICHMOND WARD. / DISCUSSION AT THE CITY COUNCIL. ;\ At the City Council meeting last even- ;': 'ling, the question of municipal representa:."j - ition 011 a population basis as provided in : jthe Municipal Corporations Act passed at, y : last session, was brought-up for discussion. ■; "The Finance and By-laws Committees reported that the question • referred to them 'vr&ad 'been considered, and the joint com- '■' 'mittee recommended that the City should : ! r'be divided into four wards, that Richmond 1 ward should bo included in the north-east .'„'vward/'that each ward should! have'a repre- •» fientation of three. Councillors, and that the ■'"■ Town Clerk should take the necessary steps /.'to carry out the alterations under the --''powers 'given by section 18k! of the Munidpal. Corporations Act, 1900. Councillor Smith said the committee had t 1 considered the question from every point '.".'of view. It was •not a pleasant thing to have to. recommend the amalgamation' of •'.'■' Richmond with the north-east ward, but - under the new Act, in order to out a in the ■ 'maximum number of councillors, it/ would .;.'' be 'necessary to divide the City into four \ ! -wards.'' If the wards were left as at pre- : sent the Council would only have tenmem- : '. bers. -If Richmond were brought in it would become an integral part, of the-City, ".::;■• and would be as well .represented as> any "'other wardi Ee moved tha adoption of ': tha report. ~ The motion Avas seconded by Councillor Morris, who said he thought the plan pro- : posed the only one'feasible. It would be ■.. a pity to lose two members for the sake , : of a small ward like 'Richmond. ';'■' Councillor Sorensen moved, as an amend- ; ;'' ittent that the five wards should remain ■':,'■ a 3: they are at present, arad that the two ■ larger wards should be represented by three' . representatives .'each, and the other two ■wards and Richmond by two each. Rich- ? 'mond -had been granted three representatives when it joined the City. That con■"difcibn could not perhaps be maintained, , but he contended that Richmond was en- ,' titled to separate representation. Councillor Samuels, in seconding the ■, amendment, said ho was very pleased to see the amendment proposed, tha recommendation of the committee was very unjust. Some time, ago the Council had been, ,anxious : to bring in all the outside boroughs ''and Richmond was tha only one that did, land it would have been better if Richmond 'had stood out. The Council had seventy labourers at work in the City but there J was only one in Richmond, to keep the roads j'in order and sweep the channelling, etc. .; Richmond was the- worst cared for ward ,'in the city. There was more money paid 'away on the-north-western, side of the city than on all the other wards put together. ;Ha could point out streets in Richmond •which were in their primitive state, and no ■money had been ever spent on them, ■'though it was urgently required. ■ Only : lately had » movement "been made towards repairs. J Councillor Gray supported the motion. 'Councillor Samuels'** "speech had been [the most extraordinary tho Council had 'ever listened to. It had been all exaggeration. The question was an important one. ' Councillor Sorensen had seemed to imply .{that-then; had been an agreement to' the 'effect tfcifo Richmond was to bo represented by three members en condition that it bc'icame part of the City; but there had been (no such agreement. If the other wards 'had equal representation with Richmond '■'.'tab the present time the Council would con- : .'satiof eighty-one members. If representation were taken on a population basis Richs§s%s.would only be entitled to one member fewViL'GbTißcillori'Lbn'sfhiian sa:d the Committee fmsjfas'^<4^-on- :- ! '; The,Act provided be.'."on a.popula-. plltffi : at ;j; PS!ljgicoraniittete shotda have, gone

Act.. . The proper way would bo to divide the city into equally populated areas. Councillor Payling said as member for the north-east ward, he would support the amendment. To add Richmond to the northeast ward and then give tho combined, ward three members only would not be faiir 'representation. Councillor Morris could not see any reason why there should not be a re-adjust-ment of boundaries. Councillor Green supported the motion, but thought there should bo a re-arrange-ment of boundaries. Councillor Scott supported the amendment, kit was of opinion that the boundaries should be re-adjusted, making the dividing line Manchester Street instead of Colombo Street. Councillor Prudhoe said lie would support the amendment provided,it was altered to the effect that a re-adjustment of •boundaries shoidd take place. Councillor. Clarke said the Act provided that the number of representatives should be fixed by the Govern or-in-Council, and that he should have regard to a population bads only. The South-west and Northwest Wards, as at present/were over-repre-sented. . Councillor Appleby said the division of the city was not a fair one, and Colombo. Street, en a population basis, was not a fair dividing line. Councillor Smith, in reply, said councillors had not studied the matter. The committee had recommended that the city should be divided into four wards, and 'the committee would have no objection to readjustment of boundaries, for that was, what was intended, as set fo-rth in section 182 of the 'Act, and the section was mentioned dn the recommendation.Tho Mayor suggested that tho recommendation should be altered to. read that the city- should be- divided into four wards, and that the boundaries should be readjusted, the committee to consider the question and report. The Council was..not unanimous on tiift question of giving leave to amend, and Councillor Sorensen's amendment was put, and lost on the casting vote of the Mayor, Councillors Samuels, Clarke, Scott,, Green, Loughnan, Sorensem,' and ■Payling voting for the amendment, and Councillors ■<* ra y> Andrews, Appleby, Cooper, Morris, Prud-hoe-and Smith against-it. Councillor Morris then moved as a furtnei amendment that all -the words after the word "wards" in the report should be omitted, and the following inserted:—" And that fhe boundaries be .re-adjusted.so as to secure fan representation on a ' rateable as we 1 as population basis, a iid that each ward be represented by three Councillors, the comimttee to report our- the matter." The amendment was carried.