Rangitikei Advocate. TWO EDITIONS DAILY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 1912. EDITORIAL NOTES.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXVI, Issue 10301, 23 February 1912, Page 4

Rangitikei Advocate. TWO EDITIONS DAILY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 1912. EDITORIAL NOTES.

WE stroagly counsel ratepayers and members of looal governing bodies to carefully examine the local goVB?uiaßrt proposals of the Ward Party, a summary o? whioh will be ionna in aaofehsr portion of this issue. They will note that, fiiaSJy, it is proposed to talis from the looal bodies their aotaal powers of selfgovernment, and place them under tho supervision asd control cf a Board, at the head of which is to be the Minister of internal Affairs By this means the Ministry, in addition to controlling the expenditure of mosey raised by taxation or by borrowing, will also obtain oentroi of revenue derived tram rates and other sources of revenue aow possessed by the local bodies. Secondly the old Provincial Council system, which was abolished in 1815, is to ba revived, with the difference that these are to be ander ooatrol of the Board, which, of ooarGo, will te a political Board,.as the; appointment of its numbers ia So be in the hands cf the Ministry. Why these Provincial Councils are to b 3 created is sot claar, because the [existing County and Borough Councils are also to b 9 retained, and to be elsotedgat the same.tiuie Provincial Councils Though the &uEaQ3a?y doss not reveal the iaofe it may b 3 token for grafted that as attempt will be made to have the members of all the bodies eleoted on the ParlJßEientary franchise, so that non-ratepayers will be able to deal with the money and interests of ratepayers, and Oonncllß composed of labour unionists and socialists may administer Sbeiraffairß and influence the expenditure and the rate-levies. The Provincial Councils are to be rating authorities, and the other local bodies are to act as collectors for them. In order that the Ministry of the day shall have absolute control of what will thee ao longer be local self-government, all looal bodies except the Ooucty and Borough Oounoils are to be swept out of existeooe, and the functions and propsrtfes of hospital and oharitable aid boards, education and harbour boards transferred to the Ministerially-controlled Provincial Oounoils, which will also deal with public health, main roads and bridges, rivers, and drainage and water supply. This alleged reform is more like a revolution which has for its object the destruction of genuine local self government, and placiag';the Interests of ratepayers entirely at the mercy of State Departments and the Ministry. No such a scheme of "grab" was required. The fact that our system government is already fairly shown by the retention of the existing County and Borough Oounoils, and it is amazing that it should 1)3 proposed to create yet another set of Oounoils with their separate officials, etc. All that was required to Improve looal government was to provide for the looal bodies 'receiving substantial assistance ;from the consolidated fand, seeing «nat the -work of maintaining hospitals, etc., has been thrown upon them by the State, but this Bill proposes to throw still greater burdens on the ratepayers For instance the Provincial Oonnoils are to absorb the Education Boards, which means tha& the cost of oar education sy3lem, whloli amounts to nearly a million a year, is to be paid by the ratepayers, and be no longer chargeable to the publSc funds derived from general tasaiion. The ratepayers will alao have to bear the cost of tne public health department, and it will also be possible to oornpel districts which have no beaaaoial interest in them to oontribots to the cost cf harbour works, river protection and drainage worfes, and water supply The ao-oalled local government proposals are sot on!? nnsatisfarfiory bat positively dangerous to the interests of ratepayers and grcpesty-owaers generally.