MUNICIPAL CONFERENCE.

Otago Witness, Issue 3862, 20 March 1928, Page 33

MUNICIPAL CONFERENCE.

CIVIC WELCOME AT NELSON. , , NELSON, March 14. The Municipal Conference was opened at Nelson this morning, a large number of delegates being present from all parts of New. Zealand. A civic welcome was accorded the delegates by the Mayor of Nelson (Mr W. J. Moffat).

UPKEEP OF HOSPITALS. NELSON, March 14. . Conflicting opinions were expressed during the discussion of a remit from Masterton— ‘‘ That local bodies be given direct representation on hospital boards.” The mover held that the body that collected the rate should have some say on the body that spent it. The Mayor of Christchurch (the Rev. J. K. Archer) said that the ratepayers were to ba considered first and not the body that merely levied the rate. The ratepayers had the matter in their own hands,. because they could elect whom they liked to the hospital boards. The Mayor of Wellington (Mr G. A. Troup) supported the remit. There had been very large increases in the hospital rates recently, he said, and the boroughs and cities should have some say. Mr D. G. Sullivan (Christchurch) supported the Mayor of Christchurch. Several other delegates spoke both for and against th<> motion, which was carried on a show of hands. Mr Archer rose to a point of order, and pointed out that many local bodies had more representatives present than the number of votes (one or two) to which they were entitled. They should be informed that only the correct number of votes should be taken by each munici pality.

The mover explained that the remit wa 3 designed to decrease the contributions from counties and increase the contribu tion from boroughs. An amendment was moved by a Greymouth delegate—“ That all charges for the upkeep of hospitals in excess of the revenue therefrom should be paid out of the Consolidated Fund, so that all sections of the community and not only the owners of land should contribute.”

The remit was amended accordingly and carried. 0

CONSIDERATION OF REMITS.

NELSON, March 15. Several remits dealing with matters coming within the scope of the Local Bodies Loans Act were discussed to-day. The first one, brought forward by Christchurch, was a proposal that municipalities should be allowed to pay unexpended loan moneys temporarily into their district fund accounts, in order to keep down he bank overdraft, on which a high rate of interest is charged. . This remit met with strong opposition, and was finally thrown out in favour of an amendment by the Timaru delegate that the banks should be induced to take into account all credits in other accounts before charging interest on current account overdraft.

An Onehunga remit was that legislation be introduced to enable borough councils to raise by special order loans for putting in drainage and sanitary fittings to ratepayers’ premises. The mover explained that at present it was necessary to take a poll of the ratepayers for this purpose, thereby incurring unnecessary expense; and if the poll was lost, causing considerable hard-hip to those affected. The remit was carried. The Wellington delegates moved that orflcrs-in-council under the Loans Board be unassailable in any court. The Mayor of Wellington (Mr G. A. Troup) said that the Wellington City Council was given endless trouble by threats of an injunction, etc., from little investigation committees. The remit was carried. That provision be made to permit boroughs and cities to have direct representation on the main highways boards and councils was a remit brought forward by Te Arolia. The mover wished to remind the conference that it was because of the activities of this associa’ion that recent concessions to boroughs had been brought about. He said that boroughs were greatly concerned with many of the decisions of the main highways boards. For instance, a borough at present had no power to express its opinion as to which road should be chosen as the main route of access to the borough. The remit was carried. A lengthy discussion took place on the following remit, which emanate.!, from the Green Island Borough Council:— “ That the present law relating to the construction, reconstruction, an I maintenance of highways in the Dominion be amended so as to enable the Main Highways Board to take over and be wholly responsible for the main arterial roads in the Dominion, with a view to coping with present and future traffic requirements.”

The mover said that the question was one of national importance, and the passing of the Main Highways Act was an indication that this importance had been recognised by the Government; but. up to the present, the Main Highways Board had done -its work merely by granting subsidies, and the mover’s council considered that there was insufficient for modern motoring requirements. Opposition to the proposal was expressed by delegates from the larger cities, who said they were not prepared to hand over control of any of their main streets to an outside body. . It was eventually decided that a committee representing both the larger cities and the smaller boroughs be set up to try

to come to some agreement as to their requirements, and to bring proposals up at a later stage of the conference. ■ LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS.

The Mayor of Christchurch (the Rev. J. K. Archer) moved—“ That this conference is of opinion that the time has now come when the qualification for all local body elections should be the parliamentary franchise.” Mr Archer said that it was time that, in a democratic country like New Zealand, citizenship, and not the possession of money or property, should be the qualifications for taking part in all forms of government. It would unify and simplify matters if the parliamentary roll was used for every purpose. The Town Clerk of Dunedin pointed out that Mr Archer was not saying what he meant. If parliamentary franchise was to be the qualification, then a man owning property in two towns would be deprived of one vote.

Mr D. G. Sullivan said that th e previous speaker’s speech was very clever, but no one would suggest that any man paying rent should not have a vote. Mr Archer meant that all those people who had their names on th e parliamentary roll should exercise every vote they were entitled to at present. * The opinion was expressed by another delegate that the Mayor of Christchurch was putting forward a doctrine which would not bear practical examination. No one could argue that all men were equal in quality cf citizenship. For municipal government a very high grade of citizenship was required, and a man who lived in a place and made hi s hom e there was a much higher grade citizen than the merely transient visitor. Mr Archer said he never expected an assembly of this kind to pass his resolution. He could remember the time, not very long ago, when he was the only man of democratic instincts who came here. From the arguments about equality made by the man at the back, he wondered where h e had been brought up to develop such silly ideas.—(Cries of “ Order Order ”) ’ ’

The delegate referred to challenged Mr Archer to meet him on any platform if he had any doubt about the growth of the speaker’s mind.

Mr Archer said he would be pleased to accept the challenge. The motion was thrown out. CIVIC RECEPTIONS.

The question as to what occasion civic receptions should be tendered was referred to the conference by the executive. Mr J. Miller (Mayor of Invercargill) said that something should be done to deal with people asking for civic receptions. Mr W. R. Rogers (Mayor of Wanganui) moved—” That the giving of civic receptions be left to the discretion of the mayors responsible for <rivin« them.”

Mr J. K. Archer (Christchurch) said there was no need for this remit, as that w-as already the practice. m? 16 M a y° r of Wellington moved—- “ That civic receptions should not be given to any person engaged in an advertising or trading undertaking.” The Mayor of Auckland (Mr Baildon) said he thought the giving of receptions should be left to the discretion of each mayor to deal with with each case on its merits. A civic reception was the greatest honour that could be paid to a man, and Auckland was very careful to whom it stave receptions. The Mayor of Wellington’s motion was seconded by the Mavor of Timaru and carried.

Mr H. D. Bennett (Wellington) moved a remit to the effect that it should be made impossible for claims in respect to the use of halls for copyright Durposes to be made. It was his council’s desire to prevent actions by a certain organisation desiring to enforce copyright against performers and the owners of halls. The association’s solicitor (Mr Martin) explained that several test cases in various parts of the Empire were at present in progress.

The Mayor of Foxton submitted that it was quite unfair that councils paying license fees in respect of halls should also have to pay fees in respect of performances staged bv travelling companies. The matter was referred to the executive. CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE WORKS.

As a result of the conference between the representatives of the boroughs and the cities the following resolutions were brought down and moved oy the Mayor of Wellington:— 1. That in the opinion of this conference all contributions in respect of construction and maintenance of streets, roads, and bridges in which more than one local body- has been, or may be held to be, interested in, by a commission set up under the Public Works Act be met by the Main Highways Board. 2. That the Main Highways Board shall pay the whole cost cf reconstruction and maintenance of streets in boroughs having a population of less than 6000 which are main highways, or a continuation of the main highways. Both resolutions were carried. SALE OF ELECTRIC ENERGY.

In order to put borough councils and electric power boards on the same footing the following remit from Timaru was passed:—"Tha' a borough council be empowered, as in the case of electric power boards, to sell electric energy on such terms and conditions as it thinxs fit, subject to the provisions of its license. On the motion of the Wellington delegates it was decided .that definite legislation should be brought down to deal with this matter.” REMITS CONSIDERED.

The Town Clerk of Timaru moved the following remit That the following remit be supported by the Executive Committee—“ That the Government be asked

to provide legislation whereby borough councils be exempt from contributing to tha construction and maintenance of bridges outside borough boundaries.” The mover held that with the present taxation on motorists for road construction, etc., borough councils should be relieved of such expenditure.—The remit was carried. In connection with the ratine of Government property the following remit was moved by the Mayor of Dcvonport (Mr E. Aldrige)“ That section 72 of the municipal Corporations Act, providing for the payment by the Government of an annual subsidy on general rates, ba rernTi <i an ? A” lleu thercfor provision be made that Government property shall rftJ” be i! Or all ss P arate a ”d special tates. It ’.as pointed out-that under mucl? r 1 3ent ♦t ySte ?L the Government paid much less than the ordinary ratepayer. Mr Bennett (Wellington) pointed out tb»t the Proposal if the remit was carried, the rates of Wellington would benefit to the extent C f £26,000. It was. he said, in® EnrJ Slb f°i t 0 C i XpeCt the Government to undertake such additional liability. The . ayor of Wellington reminded the con- >• t i iat P ie Government must easily ax onVaA demandin S land tax, income tax on tiade concerts, etc., and municipahties would then be very much worl e

The Maj'or of Feilding move I as ah amendment-” That on] / Crown pro* p occu P ,e d for domestic purpose's should be liable for the full rate.” A remit was moved urging the Government to amend the Shops and Offices Act a. to make Saturday the universal statutory . half-holiday throughout tho Tho , Mayor o£ Wanganui t, that many saopkeepers would prefer the Saturday half-holiday if they were sure there would be uniformity. Opposition was raised on the grounds that a system that suited the larger centres did not necessarily suit the small country towns. One delegate supported the remit, and advocated the closing of all shops, including hotel bars. The remit was thrown out.

It was decided that the next annual conference be held at Wanganui. Invitations were received from Timaru, Wellington, and Invercargill. It was decided that the time of meeting should be held during the first week in March in order to make it more convenient for the town clerks to attend.

«-"P 10 fol,ow i n S remit was passed: ‘That where a council erected a hall, library, or other public building ft be empowered to include therein shops and offices so as to derive therefrom rentals in excess of the annual charges involved in the erection of such shops and offices, the previous sanction of tho Local Government Loans Board to be obtained where a building is erected out of loan money, or of the Minister of Internal Affairs in other eases.” The remit was sponsored by the Hawera delegate. A remit containing previsions designed to prevent seats iu places of amusement from being reserved by the management iu order to force the public to pay for seats at higher prices was adopted. To safeguard this provision inspectors rvill have the right to challenge any seat marked reserved.

A remit issued by the Auckland delegates was adopted—that this conference affirms the principle that local authorities have no obligation to provide facilities for parking ears on streets. A remit advocating the setting up of separate main highways boards for the North and South Islands was list by a small mrgin. To bring about conformity with modern road formation was the reason given by the Mayor of Auckland in bringing forward a remit to enable borough council* to insist on the roading and the footpath* of l subdivision being tarred and sanded.

CONCLUDING SESSION. NELSON, March 17. Tha conference was concluded to-day. On the motion of the Mayor of Nelson it was resolved that the Local Authorities Superannuation Act be repealed, and that in substitution therefor the Government be asked to establish'a fund to ba contributed to by local authorities, such fund to provide for the superannuation of all their permanent employees; and that if be made compulsory for all such employees to contribute thereto, the fund tc be incorporated with and administered as part of the National Provident Fuud. A suggestion from Christchurch that the hardship involved in the transfer of an officer from the Government to a local authority or ftom one local authority to another should be eliminated was adopted.. At the conclusion of the business, the Mayor of Wellington (Mr G. A. Troup) said he had much pleasure in moving a vote of thanks to the president of the conference, the Mayor of Nelson (Mr W. J. Moffatt), for the way in which he had controlled the conference. The speaker had been told that this was the largest conference yet held. A great many important matters had come up, and yet the conference had got through on time. He also wished to thank Mr Moffatt for the very fair manner in which he had carried out his duties as chairman.

Mr Moffatt replied, thanking Mr Troup for his kind remarks. A special vote of thanks was passed to the Mayoress (Mrs Moffatt) for the splendid entertainment which she had provided for the ladies. The town clerk (Mr G. A. Edmonds) was also thanked for his many kindnesses to the delegates.