ELECTION CAMPAIGN

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21471, 20 April 1933, Page 11

ELECTION CAMPAIGN

MOUNT EDEN BOROUGH PAST PERIOD REVIEWED RATE REDUCTION PROMISED The Mayor of Mount Eden, Mr. T. McNab, supported by a group of candidates for tho council, opened his campaign for a return to office at a wellattended meeting in tlio Gordon Road Hall last evening. Mr. J. W. Shackleford presided and the three speakers received a most attentive hearing. They gave an account of borough affairs during their period of .office and confidently predicted a substantial reduction in rates.

"Things have changed very much since we met in this hall two years ago," said Mr. McNab. "The Mount Eden Borough Council was getting to tho stage that tho Thames Borough was in. Wo owed £30,000 and wo decided to take an extreme measure." The council decided not to make the sinking fund payments and that saved approximately 6d in tho pound that year. Unfortunately, to square the sinking fund in the next year, and to pay all sorts of old accounts that came in, they had to raise tho rates to 4s lid. Now the accounts were all squared and in order and there was nothing to hinder a full reduction in the rates. There was no borough in New Zealand that had done as much for relief labour as Mount Eden. The total cost of relief labour to the borough had been £BOO. In carrying out its pledges to ratepayers, tho council had reduced salaries by £2OOO a year. The City Council would have to reduce its charges for water 20 or 25 per cent, or it would lose tho custom of all outside boroughs. By co-opera-tion with another borough, Mount Eden had secured all the money it wanted for the next year's work at 3i per cent. They still had an old-standing grudge with tho Hospital Board. They paid it some £6OOO a year, but had no direct representation on tho board. The borough was handicapped by the action of tho Government as mortgagee, and to-day the council had about £II,OOO owing to it by the Government. "We are going to make a reduction of rates that will put you back practically to the old 4s 2d," said Mr. McNab. "Wo have the first application in New Zealand for loan conversion, and if we get that, I give you my word tho reduction will bo at least Bii. Givo us an opportunity to try the smooth going after the rough." The finances of the borough wero discussed by Mr. E.' S. Battley, who showed that in two years the money paid in wages and salaries had dropped from £4775 to £2878. Similar reductions were shown in other departments during the council's tenure of office. An account of the works recently carried out in the borough was given by Mr. S. E. Cliappell, chairman of the Works Committee.

There were several questions of a hostile nature regarding relief works. To a questioner who asked if Mr. McNab would "cease victimisation," he replied: "Out of 500 relief workers wo have only had to discharge three men." The only motion taken was one of thanks to the chairman.