Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, MAY 30, 1914. THE AFFAIRS OF THE CITY.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLVIII, Issue XLVIII, 30 May 1914, Page 4

Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, MAY 30, 1914. THE AFFAIRS OF THE CITY.

THE special -meeting of the -City Council held' last evening brought into prominence n several very unsatisfactory matters in connection, with Council affairs. The Mayor contended that the year's work had .been satisfactory. He must 'be easily pleased. In the first rplaee 'the overdraft (.general account) wAs increased from £19,627 14s lOd to £21,479 13s. That is, the sum of £2 352 .was added 1 to tlie indebtedness of the < : .ty. In .other words, ratepayers .money was spent to the extent o£ licarly ii 5d rate, in addition to the rai-e struck last year. And' the .people of the city would have been better off in the long run if the rates had' 'been increased by between 4d and 1 scl last year. Ihis is in regard to money spent. Further than this, it must bo remembered an extra. £2900 of work was authorised by the Council in addition to that actually carried out. Therefore, so far as the Council. itself is concerned, the overdraftwould have ibeen increased by a -further £2900. And ratepayers will see that this would -be equivalent to a rate of 7jjd. So it will be seen that money spent in- addition to the rate revenue, and the money represented by works authorised by the -Council, ibut. not carried out, amounts to a sum that would mean adding some £5252 to the ovei - - draft, or an addition of Is Id to the rato of Is 7d 'which was struck .for the year. The Mayor is no more to •blame "than Councillors for this extraordinary state of affairs ; but mrfet Councillors see the absurdity of the- position, whereas the Mayor apparently docs not.

We know, of course, that there was a •considerable ■eatient, unforseeK expenditure last year. But whilst the actual items may bo peculiar to the period, they are recurring in 'the sense that a very considerable extent of un■forseeii expenditure occurs every year. And it is the duty of the Council to make provision for it out of rates instead of taking it out of the ratepayers in the less open .way of .piling up the o\ erdraft. Public men who keep one eve on the gallery always talk a great, deal about reducing the rates- But what is required is a. reduction of the 'burdens i> 11- the people. \Yhat is the ."•cod of reducing the rates, or mot slightly increasing thein for that matter, it money is spent out of overdraft?. Fuder this wretched system ratepayers have to find the money, and. pay interest as well. Is it a- fuir thing to the rate-, viners to keep down the rates and pile' •iu the overdraft "! Keeping down the ex- I

penditure is another matter. This-is a question of policy; but to strike a lower rate than is required and to pile up the overdraft is not 'fair dealing to the people.

Despite all these facts, which must- be j obvious to all, the Mayor last- evening j proposed, to 'bo consistent as Tie said, presumably with his notorious to reduce the existing rate by one penny. The Finance Committee had recommended an increase of 2d; but the Mayor in his analysis of 'the figures said the rate could be reduced by at least 4jd .from the Is 9d suggested by the Committee. Yet he moved that it be reduced only by 3d, or Id off the existing rate. As it is, all his reduction amqunts to is not paying this year, £4OO out of £6OO required as paymentof the automatic booster that is being bought for street-lighting purposes. The Council does not need to pay the £4OO this year, and not paying it represents a "saving" of £4OO, which means a penny rate less than it would otherwise be necessary to collect this year. Cr. Harley spoke out strongly last evening against the very unsatisfactory system of keeping the rates low and piling up the overdraft. .

The time has come for a proper overhaul of the Council's methods. The Mayor may consider that the past year's work has been sa^sfactory; 'but the majority of the ratepayers will be of the contrary opinion. Cr. Bishop was right when he contended' for a revision of ihe Council's system -of working. The works should be fixed for the year, and if the rate existing is not sufficient to meet the necessary expenditure it should be increased, or the expenditure reduced. And. there should be a good margin for unforseen expenditure. Then, again, the Council should' not authorise works beyond those it expects the engineer to carry out. Where would the Council have been if the Engineer had carried out all the authorised work last

year?. Yet why should .ho Hot proceed with the authorised' works?