LOCAL BODY LOANS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 89, 14 March 1934, Page 2

LOCAL BODY LOANS

CONVERSION OPERATIONS. Per Press Association. WELLINGTON, March, 14. Reference to the Local Authorities Interest Reduction and Loans Conversion Act was made by Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes at the Municipal Conference. He said the Act was passed for the purpose of reducing the rate of interest local bodies had to pay on loans, and also to bring they, into the .conversion scheme. It had been availed of by quite a largo number and he desired to impress the desirability of taking full advantage of the Act so as to get local body finances on a sound ba«s. So far as the reduction of the rate of interest was concerned, that depended a good deal on Parliament and might not continue, and he though it would be wise for the local bodies to act without delay. The Loans Board up to the present had deal> with over £20,000.000 by way of conversions representing about half the total local body debt, but it had still a long way to go. A pleasing feature about the scheme was that since the passing of the legislation the rate of interest had fallen substantially and local bodies were having no difficulty in filling their requirements at 4J per cent, and in some cases lower.