THE WARD SYSTEM

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11564, 30 January 1901, Page 4

THE WARD SYSTEM

The Auckland City Council cannot be congratulated upon its decision to adhere to the ward system, although the reduction of the six wards to five is a move in the right direction. Mr. Baume's proposal to make the city an undivided borough commends itself to many. No merely paper* reform can possibly save us from ineffective administration, but it is very certain that the abolition of the ward would assist the growth of the true municipal spirit among us. The Mayor says that the undivided borough in past years was not a success, but it was more like a success than the present system. We had a better Council and better management because the average councillor was superior, and the present absurd allocation of funds did not exist. The borough system necessitates a city reputation, as has been well argued, and tends to exclude the merely local celebrity who under the ward system has apparently the best chances of election. Throughout the world, really progressive thought is recognising that in the larger constituency lies a remedy for serious evil tendencies of parochial democracy. The tendency is visible in Britain, no less than in America and in Australia. In fact, the most potential argument for the complicated Hare system of voting lies in the probability that it would help to exclude the unsatisfactory type of politician which flourishes in petty surroundings. The Auckland Council have decided to remain under the ward system, and we do not question the good intentions of the majority which made this decision. But we would point out that the present status of our municipality renders it peculiarly liable to the belittling influences of State centralisation policies. This liability must continue unchecked until such changes take place as will make a seat on the Council eagerly sought for. and hotly contested by our most representative citizens.