RAILWAYS POSITION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20722, 15 November 1930, Page 13

RAILWAYS POSITION.

INCREASE IN LOSS STOPPED. ECONOMIES PRODUCING RESULTS HOPE IN IMPROVING TRADE. [BY TELEGRAPH.— PRES3 ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON. Friday. Commenting to-day on the latest railway operating returns, the Minister of Railways, Hon. W. A. Veitch, said that while the unexpected fall in revenue would undoubtedly affect the finances of the railways at the end of the year, there was every reason to believe that the economies already adopted, amounting to £150,000, plus those still under consideration, would enable the department to show the reductions of expenditure it was aiming at. Later in the year they hoped to show better figures than had been revealed for the opening months, because economies that were being put into operation would have fuller effect during the remaining months of the financial year. Mr. Veitch said that to stop the increase in the railway deficit required no mean effort, apart altogether from the question of reducing it. That had been definitely accomplished in the face of a fall in revenue, and reduction of the deficit is developing. In the last three months, they had cut expenditure down by £150,000.

General trade depression throughout the country had reduced the revenue very considerably during the last three months, but there was a feeling that trade conditions were beginning to improve and it was reasonable to assume that the railway revenue would get a. share of that reaction. CLOSING OF BEAirCH LINES. MAJOR QUESTION POSTPONED. [BY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENT.] WELLINGTON, Friday. In addition to considering further increases in the schedule of rates, the Minister of Railways, Hon. W. A. Veitch, intends to consider other recommendations made by the Railway Commission. "So far as concerns the proposed closing of branch lines, recommended by the commission," said the Minister today,. "only this week 1 have made a number of decisions. They will be made public in due course. With minor alterations, most ol the recommendations with respect to br.'.nch lines will be adopted. Some are being held over for further consideration.''

Asked if it was proposed to give effect to tho recommended chango of control and place the management of the railways under a board of directors, the Minister said the present constitution could not bo altered without legislation. In the meantime he was concentrating on strengthening tho finances of the system so far as he could. Most of the commission's recommendations could bo dealt with without legislation. "I am working on those immediately," ho said, "and leaving such as do require legisla- | tion for consideration by the Cabinet after the Prime Minister returns from England." STAFFING AND "WAGES. REPLY BY WORKSHOPS MEN. The suggestions that the Railway Department is overstaffed, contained in resolutions recently passed by various chambers of commerce, farmers' unions and Other bodies, were considered at a largelyattended meeting of workshops employees held at the Otahuhu shops at noon on Thursday. Mr. J. Elliott, chairman of the Otahohn branch of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, said it had been contended that the wages of railway servants were too high and the hours worked too short, and that this, with the overstaffing of the department, contributed largely to the deficiency in revenue. Mr. Elliott referred to the 40 per cent, reduction in freights which he said these critics had enjoyed during the past decade. He criticised tho attitude taken up by the Farmers' Fertiliser Company,,which had shown a balance-sheet profit for the past year of £99,321 and a credit balance of net profit amounting to £30,975. This company, Mr. Elliott said, paid a dividend of 8 per cent, per annum, and, as the finding of the Royal Commission showed, tho company had saved £30,000 on freight from free carriage of lime and enormous reductions in freights on fertilisers. It was therefore difficult to reconcile its attitude in criticising the railway men because the service was not paying. He referred to the destructive tone of the criticism levelled at the railway administration and the Minister and suggested that something constructive by way of co-operative assistance to the department should be offered. At the conclusion of the meeting tho following resolution wa:i carried:—"That this mass meeting takes strong exception to the text of certain resolutions recently circulated in the press by the Employers' Federation, chambers of commerce and farmers' unions, and as these are entirely misleading and grossly nnfair to the State employees we recommend the various unions in the servico immediately to cooperate with a view to the publication of an effective and truthful defence."