MONEY FOR SCHOOLS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16473, 8 July 1921, Page 7

MONEY FOR SCHOOLS.

EDUCATION BOARD’S POSITION. ECONOMY AGAIN URGED. The necessity for economy in spending money on education was urged again at ilte meeting of tho Canterbury Education Board to-day, when the report of the Buildings Committee, recommending building works, was read. Mr G W. Armitage (chairman of the Buildings Committee) moved that the report should be adopted. The motion was seconded. Mr H. J. Bignell (chairman of the Finance Committee) # referred to the board’s financial position and said that it was absolutely necessary to keep the expenditure within tho income. Mr W. A- Banks said that when there were items in the Buildings Committee’s report, involving expenditure, which the chairman of. the Finance Committee opposed, th--» items should be referred back to the Buildings Committee. Mr C. S. Thompson moved as an amendment that all items in the report involving expenditure should be referred back to the committee for further consideration. Air J. Jamieson seconded the amendment .

Several members said that economy was necessary, and the chairman (Mr E. H. Andrews) said that the board could erect buildings economically, as had been shown by the work of the foreman and ihe architect. If expenditure was cut out now much more expenditure might be required later on. Mr Thompson asked that a letter from the department in regard to maintenance should be read.

The chairman then read the- following clause from the letter, written _ by Mr A. Bell, secretary for Education: *■' T have to draw attention to the fact that the board has expended £9358 12s 8d on tho maintenance of buildings, etc., moro than it had in hand for the purpose, and that for this expenditure there was no authority in law. An attempt has been made to .justify the expenditure by showing as a cash receipt the sum of £13,388 from the workshops, etc., a sum which is understood to represent the value of the workshops, plant and material in hand at tho end of the year. The Department cannot, however, agree that this is any justification for the use of other funds for maintenance purposes or for workshop and material, and T hare to inform' this board that the question is now being considered as to what steps should be taken in the matter, and that it has to be decided whether the members of the board are nersonallv liable for what appears to be a misappropriation of its funds." The chairman said that tho whole thing was summed up in the word ‘‘bunkum.” If money was spent on workshops, and the hoard had "a debit on maintenance account, the workshops must stand to the hoard’s credit. The Minister had urged other boards to do the same as the Canterbury Board had done, and to build workshops. If the Department took up the attitude suggested the only thing to do was to realise on the workshops, which could he done at once. Thev were a valuable property—buildings, machinery, plant and material. He believed that if the board applied to the Department for the money, it would get it. He was not. at nil concerned about that clause in the letter. ♦

In reply to Mr Jamie«on. the chairman said that the board's officers had been instructed to prepare a statement on which an application for €13.388 on account of the workshops would bo made to the Department. Mr Thompson’s amendment was lost, and tlio report was adopted.