NEW RACING PERMITS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18964, 11 March 1925, Page 10

NEW RACING PERMITS.

DISPUTE OVER ALLOCATION. POSITION OF THE MINISTER. POINTS OF DIFFERENCE. [BY TIXEdIIAI'H. — IT. ESS ASSOCIATION. ] WELLINGTON. Tuesday. A letter, iri reply to the recent stateuifiit by Sir George Clifford, president of the Hacing Conference, concerning disagreement over I lie issue of tho new totalisator permits, has been forwarded !<> liim by the Hon, I". I'". Bollard. Minister for Internal Affairs. "I regret, that your being prevented, by ill-health, from attending the conference with me when the allocation of new permits was prepared for the Government's consideration, has .seemingly, from your letter, caused some misapprehension. I should therefore like to state for your information the official record of the principal events which governed the mailing of the allocation. "When tho time arrived for making the, recommendation to Cabinet for the allocation J telegraphed you asking if it would be convenient to you to meet me in Parliament .Buildings on cither of certain days. You replied that as you were, unable to travel the secretary of the conference would arrive in Wellington on the following day. and would explain your views, but that tho recommendation with regard to allocation rested with the Mates Commit lee of the conference. I duly had a conference arranged with the secretary of the conference, who undertook to forward the. recommendation for my consideration. Later I received a letter signed by you as president of the conference containing the recommendation of the Dates Committee. When I received this f naturally assumed that the recommendation bad the endorsement of the. conference, to which all my communications had been made. Result of Conference. " After giving the recommendation very careful consideration I telegraphed you at Rotorua asking if either you or Lie chairman of the Dates Committee cou' ' meet me in Wellington to discuss the allocation. \ou replied, stating ii. impossible for you to do so, but thai you had referred my message to the chairman of the Dates Committee. A fe.v days later the chairman,of the commi.iee, with the secretary of the conference, met me. in Parliament Buildings. Wo discussed fully the conference's recommendation, together with those 1 had myseit drawn up. With seven of the conference's recommendations for the 12 permits available— with the exception of one ch;b which the conference recommended for two pernios, and which 1 considered in view of the claims of other clubs not included, was entitled to only one of the new permits—we were in total agreement. With four of the remaining five recommendations, one of which was in favour of a metropolitan club, we were not in agreement. In regard to another one of the five recommendations, I do not think itcould be said that we were absolutely in | disagreement. "I think the facts, as T have stated them, which the of the department substantiate, will appeal to you and to the chairman of the Dates Committee as being a correct version of what trail- ! pired. The reason for the disagreement expressed by the chairman of tho Dates Committee iri regard to the clubs which the Government, on my recommendation, included in the allocation, in substitution for five clubs recommended by the conference, upon which we disagreed, was that it was the policy of the conference to give the now permits to existing clubs (those clubs which already had totalisator permits) and not to new clubs (those clubs which had either raced without totalisator, permits or those which had been some time formed but had not raced). The Guiding Principle. " My reply to that was that it was definitely laid down in Parliament during the debate on ,the Gaming Amendment Bill last year that if the Legislature passed the provision for additional permits the guiding principle of issue of those permits would be that country clubs should benefit. The intention of Parliament and of the Government has thus' been maintained in the allocation of the permits. It will be recognised, I am sure, that those country clubs which have received a share in the allocation, i/ow serve districts whose population had greatly increased since foundation. It was the aim of the Government in carrying out Parliament's intention to see that the people of tho districts I have metioned received some of the facilities for their amusement existing in the metropolitan centres. "In conclusion, I regret very much that ill-health prevented you personally from conferring with me regarding the allocation. Had it been possible for you to do so probably there would not have been need for this correspondence, for I could have made more clear the responsibility I had to undertake as Minister answerable to Parliament for the allotment of the additional permits it provided."