MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS

Stratford Evening Post, Issue 10, 7 March 1930, Page 8

MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS

CONFERENCE AT WORK

FURTHER DELIBERATION

IXVERCA(HULL, March G,

A draft, of the proposed Municipal Authorities Amendment Bill was considered. Mr 1.. A. Troup (Wellington) said Sir Joseph Ward had agreed to make the Bill a private measure but the Minister of Internal Affairs stated that it might or might not he made a Government measure. r J he Bill had been held up during the hist session of I’mJiament and as a result it was before the Conference for further consideiatiou or amendment it they were considered necessary. There was no compulsion about insurance. The municipalities could join or remain out as they pleased. The Conference decided to support the Bill. Mr G. A. Troup (Wellington) moved: “That it be an instruction from ibis Conference to the executive that it prepare a report for submission to the next Conference on the question of local bodies pooling their sinking funds under the control of a Board of Sinking Fund Commissioners, with a view to lending such sinking funds to local bodies. ’> In doing so, he said that the sinking funds at the present time amounted to £4,000,000, and iu lew years time it would be much greater. If they pooled their sinking funds and if they were controlled by one body instead of 50 they would bo able to get very much higher rates- of interest. The borrowing position of the local bodies was in a very sound way and some of the largest municipalities could get terras as goocf as. or better than the Government. England was considering a similar scheme. fhe motion was carried. Election of Officers ft was (budded to hold the next conference at Rotorua. The election of of ficers resulted: President, Mr T, Jackson (Rotorua); vicepresidents, the Mayors of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin and Invercargill; executive committee, the Mayors of Redding, Mastorton, Wanganui and Hamilton. Councillors M. F. Luckic (Wellington), M. E. Lyons (Christchurch), chairman of the Ellerslie Town Board, Chairman of the Otautau Board and the Chairman of the Auckland Transport Board.