FINANCE FOR HOSPITAL

Taranaki Daily News, 16 April 1932, Page 12

FINANCE FOR HOSPITAL

draft estimates passed LOCAL BODY LEVY POSSIBLY 2s. 9£d. RATEPAYERS TO FIND OVER £lB,OOO DEPARTMENT’S APPROVAL SOUGHT Complaining that the Government had left it in the dark concerning both the amount of subsidy and its intentions regarding the future administration of charitable relief, the Taranaki Hospital Board yesterday passed draft estimates, for the year 1932-33 totalling £36,238. This means that £18,119 will have to be found by local bodies and, if the estimates are approved by the department without further reductions, a levy of 2s. 9|d. on every £lOO of capital value. The original draft submitted was reduced by allowing £lOOO instead of £2OOO for additional expenditure following the opening of the George Tabor Ward. It was pointed out by the general manager (Mr. E. Holden) that last year, in order to relieve ratepayers as much as possible, the levy on local bodies had been reduced by 6.3 d. compared with the previous year. This had been accom-

plished by bringing into the accounts as revenue £6560 cash-in-hand and £5300 lying in the loan account. For the forthcoming year, however, the board had no such reserves to draw upon and so had to call upon the ratepayers to make up the amount of revenue in question. Similar action had been taken by the Government at the beginning of last year, when it used up certain reserves lying to its credit in London; this year those reserves had gone and the taxpayers had to make up the amount.

SUMMARY OF ESTIMATES. Summarising the estimates, Mr. Holden reported that under the heading of maintenance estimated payments were £46,230 and estimated receipts £14,174, leaving a balance to provide of £32,056. The capital expenditure estimated was £5345, less estimated receipts £163, equalling £5182. This, added to the amount to be found for maintenance, made a total of £37,238 to be found by the board. Allowing for a Government subsidy of 50 per cent.,' this meant that the local bodies would be asked to find £18.619. The levy would be 2s. 10|d. in £lOO on the district’s rateable capital value of £13,000,000, which was estimated to produce £18,687 10s. Last year the levy was 2s. 1.7(4., and the previous year 2s. Bd. Last year the balance the board had to find was £12,643 (maintenance) plus £1426 (capital), making a total of £14,069, so that there was an increase of £4550 in this year’s estimates over last year’s.' The principal increases were £2OOO in connection with anticipated extra, expenditure after the opening of the George Tabor Ward and £lOOO for relief. The chairman (Mr. S. Vickers) pointed out that during the year just concluded the board had overspent its estimate for relief by £lOB6. Government subsidies outstanding at the date of balance totalled £1431 Ils. 6d. and local bodies’ levies outstanding to £l6 13s.

4d. , / The chairman said the board, thanks to the manner in which the levy had been paid by the'local bodies, was fortunate in showing a credit balance of £l5B after allowing for £1448 comprising outstanding subsidy and levies. Without these the total payments were £63,323 and the total receipts £62,033. Mr. A. J. Brennan remarked that on the figures submitted by Mr. Holden the opening of the Tabor Ward would mean an. addition of 4d. to the levy and the increased estimate for relief 3d., half of which would be covered by the Government subsidy. The chairman pointed out that the number of patients had increased during March. Admissions totalled 238, compared with 187 during the corresponding month of 1931. The highest number for one day was 175 (156) and patients remaining in the Institution totalled 174, compared with 154. Patients discharged numbered 209, compared with 161, so that they were being put through more quickly than previously. Mr. R. J. Deare said that when the

Tabor Ward was opened there w-ould be an increase in the number of beds. “BOARD IN THE DARK.” “Until we know the mind of the Government, we are acting in the dark,” said Mr.-Gosnell. He pointed out that if it were decided by the Government, as had been suggested, that the board should hand over the administration of relief to the unemployment committee the board’s expenditure would be reduced. And what wpuld happen to the estimates if the Government were to turn round and tell the board there would be no subsidy? Though faced with all this uncertainty the board had to do something, but what could it do? It might strike a rate that would be either too much or too little in the light of subsequent events. In reply to Mr. H. E. Blyde, Dr. G. F. Rich, medical superintendent, said the average stay of patients in the New Plymouth hospital was a little longer than elsewhere, but last month it had been shorter. The chairman said an effort had been made not to keep patients longer than necessary. Referring to Mr. Gosnell’s remarks, he said that this was a statutory meeting of the board, which was compelled by the Government to pass the estimates before April 18. They would still require the approval of the Government, and he had no doubt an official' would be sent to cut them down. He was afraid that if the proposal to hand over the relief administration from the board to the unemployment committee were brought into operation it would mean a worse position for the board in the long run. Mr. Blyde: The rate proposed will be very serious for the ratepayers. Mr. A. Corkill: If the estimates are approved in their present form we will have to collect 2s. IOJd. by levy, and I eannot see how we are going to do that. In my own case the harbour rate amounts to £l4. I think it will be harder still before the winter is through. There are men whose wool did not pay even for the sale. This is not a year in which to increase the rates, and it will simply mean less will be collected. The Government should be ur<fed to do something. Mr. Gilmour said he would oppose a levy of 2s. lOld. The chairman: You can oppose, but what else is the board to do?

Mr. J. Brown said no one liked paying rates, but the committee had spent 6J hours over this matter and he could not see any other way out. He liked paying rates as little as anyone else, but the accounts must be balanced. Mr. Gilmour: There is one tiring—the ratepayers do see the worth of their money in this hospital, but I cannot say the Scinie foi other loc<il bodies. Mr. Brennan agreed that it was very difficult to know where to make a cut. Mr. Gilmour had said he was going to yote against a levy of 2,5. jotd., but it was ,{io use doing that if they passed the estimates.

Answering Mr. Blyde, Mr. Holden said the item of £3335 under actual expenditure included expenditure inside and outside the hospital and replacements of crockery, drapery, etc. The estimate of £3200 for this year included £7OO for very necessary repairs to the roof of the nurses’ home. Mr. Deare moved that the estimate for the Tabor Ward be reduced from £2OOO to £lOOO, thus decreasing the levy by Id. Dr. Rich failed to see why there should be an increase of £2OOO when the ward was opened. There would be an increase for fuel and light, but otherwise there should not be much extra. The ward was taking the place of another ward. A member: Five hundred pounds would cover it. MIGHT BE LIBERAL. Mr. Holden said that the fact that the ward was new might mean that £2OOO was a liberal estimate, as there would not be the need for renewals as in other wards. However, they were transferring from a small ward, which was cheap to run, and it was only logical to believe that the larger ward would be more expensive to run. It might be necessary to run three shifts instead of two in the laundry this winter. The Government was lying very low about subsidies, etc. He had had no information from the department. All he could do at present was to provide for a 50-50 basis of subsidy. Mr. Blyde seconded Mr. Deare’s motion about the Tabor Ward estimate. An amendment suggested by Mr. Corkill was that the extra expenditure for the ward should be reduced to £5OO. This was seconded by Mr. Gilmour

The amendment was lost and the motion for a reduction to £lOOO was carried.

Mr. J. Gibbs did not see how the expenditure proposed on relief, £4650, compared with £4636 last year. The chairman said last year’s estimates had been cut down by £5OO by the department, otherwise the overspending for the year would have been only about £5O odd. He pointed out that the collections of fees by the solicitors had fallen from £1584 10s. in 1931 to £642 12s. in 1932, thus showing that all the old accounts were being exhausted. Mr. Gilmour said it was most unfair that the Government should keep the board in the dark about its intentions concerning relief, and yet expect the board to make its estimates. It was decided to let the amount for relief remain as estimated. Mr. Gosnell asked whether it would be possible to raise, say, £5OOO by debentures, thereby saving possibly 1J or 1 per cent, interest on what was charged for the overdraft. Mr. Holden said that it would nie-an a fixed rate of interest, whereas, with an overdraft, any credits that came to hand might be used to reduce the overdraft and save interest. Last year a considerable amount had been saved that way, so it was questionable whether anything would be gained by Mr. Gosnell’s suggestion, particularly as there would be -legal costs in connection with the raising of the loan. The estimates were passed. The figures submitted to the board by Mr. Holden showed that during the year ending March 31, £62,033 19s. 9d. had been received for maintenance and capital works, compared with an estimate of £62,804, while £1448 4s. lOd. was outstanding in Government subsidies and local body levies. On the expenditure side, the estimate was £62,804, and the amount actually spent £63,323 IBs. 4d. The estimated receipts for 1932-33 maintainance were £14,174, -excluding local body levies and subsidies on them. Including these (at £12,628 and £11,159 respectively), £45,785 was received last year. Estimates for capital expenditure totalled only £2662, as against £16,248 12s. Bd. last year, donations and subsidy on them being fixed at £1250 each. The expected revenue from fees was put at £lO,OOO, £10,414 in current fees having been collected in 1931-32.

The estimated expenditure on maintenance was £30,100, compared with £29,568 last year. The main items were: Provisions £5400 (£4999 last year), surgery and dispensary £3OOO ( £2984), fuel, light and water £2700 ( £2017), repairs and establishment £3200 ( £3335), salaries £l'l,Blo ( £10,84)1). The total estimated cost, of the Rangiatea Home was £1990 ( £l9ll last year), relief £4650 (£4636), administration £22110 ( £2088). The estimated grand total on maintenance was £46,230 as against the £46,163 actually spent last year. On the capital side £4525 must be spent on loan repayments, but the expenditure on capital works had been cut down to £620 and there was a debit carried forward of £lO7O.