THE CITY SEATS.

Observer, Volume XXXV, Issue 13, 5 December 1914, Page 3

THE CITY SEATS.

Can Auckland Representation be Improved?

It has not always been a matter of returning the best Aucklanders to Parliament, but to return the best representatives who offered their services. A notable feature in the impending fight is that in most of the city electorates there have been large increases of population, City Central alone showing a decrease. Since 1911 Auckland's importance has greatly increased with the advance in population. The city has advanced m enterprise, its services have improved, and its general expansioni has been much more rapid than that of any other centre. It follows that representatives of the largest and most progressive city in New Zealand should be the best men the city affords; men who will appreciate the increased honour. It is to be remembered that Auckland does not send members to Parliament merely as advocates of their own electorates, but as counsel for the people of the nation. The statesman who achieves fame is not known to the world as a mere representative of ten thousand people. He is a representative of all the people of the whole country. It is not to be denied, however, that local ability concentrated on local needs is regarded as the chief reason for the return of a member, for in party politics the member who is not aggressive for his own district is unlikely to get a fair share of the loaves and fishes. The roads, bridges and railways advocate who, in Parliament and out insists on the claims of the people he represents, and who is successful, is, under the present circumstances, superior in value to the more modest man with national ideals. Auckland members have at least understood the value of local advancement, and have greatly asserted it. It is unnecessary to say that whether a member is "Liberal" or "Reform," he must be actuated by the same ideals of service to the people of his electorate, and to the country generally. Changes in local representation are inevitable. The people at the ballot box, uninfluenced by anything that is said or read, declare that these changes are necessary. It is the people's privilege to reward or punish politicians.