GOVERNMENT ARCHITECTS

Taranaki Daily News, 13 February 1931, Page 9

GOVERNMENT ARCHITECTS

CRITICISM AT CONFERENCE

ALLEGED INFERIORITY OF WORK.

DOMINATION BY CIVIL SERVANTS.

By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. Criticism of the amount of architectural work done by the Public Works Department and of its quality were made in the presidential address of Mr. E. R. Wilson to the Institute of Architects to-day. “Notwithstanding our past protests and the favourable replies received from Ministers and heads of departments, the Public Works Department continues to provide throughout the greater part of the Dominion and on every noi-sible opportunity the requisite architectural services lor schools, hostels and hospital buildings, he said. ' “Those of us who are experienced and who have had opportunities of examining the work turned out realise its inferior nature and its greater cost and that the public blindly pays the piper with the Government departments holdin;. the reins of finance,” continued My. Wilson. “There is no adequate criticism of such building projects, and public bodies mostly consider compliance with the Government demands and suggestions as the line of least resistance. Through acquiesence with Ministers who are usually in office for but a comparatively short period the country is gradually drifting into a, ytate or domination "by civil servants. The position is to be the more regretted in sucli bad times as the present.” While dealing with civil servants and their architectural work the said that during the year the institute had reported to the Public Service Com-mif-sioner two cases of civil servants undertaking private architectural work. The CommTssioner had previously given an assurance that he would co-opeia.e with the institute in putting a stop to such unfair practices. He replied that upon investigation he had found the complaints were fully justified. When the secretary of the institute was discussing the matter w, th 1C Commissioner it was brought to his notice that architects in private piactice were employing civil servants to do> cettain architectural work. This stateniun was found to be correct and the executive of the institute circularised all members requesting that it should cease.