Hospital Advances Highest

Manawatu Times, Volume 63, Issue 182, 4 August 1938, Page 6

Hospital Advances Highest

Loans Board’s Activities Reviewed POLICY OF INTERNAL LOAN* per Press Association. WELLINGTON, Last Night. An interesting review of tho operations of the Local Government Loans Board for the year ended March 31, 1935, was given by the Minister of Finance (Hon. W. Nash) to-day. He stated that tho total applications that came under the purview cl the board during tho year amounted to £3,677,423, being new applications amounting to £3,362,173, and amounts relerred back for modification or amendment totalling £315,250. Sanction was given to loans for new works amounting to £3,098,445 and redemption loans were approved to the extent of £122,758. Since the board came into being, in 1927, tho total applications had involved £43,037,991 and loans sanctioned had totalled £23,160,043 for new works and £1G,225,595 for redemption purposes. During the past financial year hospitals headed the list for new loans, a total of £755,430 being sanctioned. Electric power board loans amounted to £GS9,IIO, city and borough works £506,025, harbour works £407,000, 3 per cent. Housing Joans £256,920. Other loans included those for waterworks, reads, bridges, tramways, fire boards, overdrafts and miscellaneous items. The Minister set out the method of redemption payments, showing that from £849,515 in 1938, re-payments would increase year by year to £1,521,135 in 1955, and then decline to £11,400 in 1973. In addition, Joans totalling £11,693,389 were on tho instalment re-pavment system, and tho repayments under that heading increased progressively each year. Tho gross debt, said the Minister, reached its peak in 1931, when the figure stood at £72,686,036, whereas six years later it had dropped to £68,559,750. “It is significant," stated Mr. Nash, “that figures regarding tho domicile of local body debt indicate that there is a tendency in modern times for New Zealand to arrange its own finance within the country'." He pointed out that the amount of debt outstanding in the United Kingdom and Australia had steadily decreased, and as at March 31, 1937, the amount domiciled in the United Kingdom was shown as just under £14,000,000, while the amount in Australia was slightly over £2,000,000, against £85,000,000 in 1931. At the present time the amount domiciled in these two countries was probably even smaller still. The Minister stated that tho rest of the debt was held within the Dominion and, in view of the present policy of authorising the raising of new loans only in New Zealand, tho tendency would be to increase still further the holdings in New Zealand and reduce overseas indebtedness as existing loans fell due and were paid off from sinking funds. A certain number of oversea loans would no

doubt still be required to meet loans falling due overseas, in respect of which the sinking funds were inadequate, although in numerous suck cases redemption loans had in recent years been raised in New Zealand to pay off oversea indebtedness.