FRANK DEBATE.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20290, 27 April 1934, Page 5

FRANK DEBATE.

Finances of Tramway Board. MEETING IN COMMITTEE. Further consideration was given to the report of the investigating accountants (Messrs J. Anderson and H. A. C. North) on the position of the tramway finances at a special meeting of the Christchurch Tramway Board held last evening in committee. It is understood that the numerous points raised by the accountants were dealt with in detail, but that no definite decisions were made in regard to the fixing of a rate or any of the matters mentioned. In- addition, a memorandum prepared by the General Manager (Mr Frank Thompson) was submitted to the meeting in the form of a reply to the accountants’ report. Mr Thompson’s statement, however, was not released for publication last evening. The meeting in committee lasted from 7.30 until ten o’clock and it is believed that the affairs of the board were very frankly discussed. The chairman (the Rev J. K. Archer), when approached at the conclusion of the meeting in regard to issuing the manager’s memorandum to the newspapers, said that Mr Thompson would have to decide whether or not to give out his statement for publication, as it contained Mr Thompson's personal summary of the position. After consideration, however, Mr Thompson informed reporters who had been waiting for the end of the meeting that he would not issue his statement in the meantime. Comment by Mr Sykes. That there would have been no reason for a tramways rate if the City Council had not issued so many licenses for omnibuses to run in opposition to the trams, was a statement made by Mr D. Svkes, a former member of the board, in an interview. He said that the present chairman of the board was Mayor at the time that

omnibus permits were issued for services to Sumner, North Beach, Central Brighton, Papanui, Avonside, Spring, field Road, West Spreydon and Heathcote. The board was obliged to spend thousands of pounds in buying out all the opposition buses which were for sale when the omnibus legislation came into force, prior to which the competition with the trams had been very costly to the board. Mr Sykes described the “ vicious permit system ” as an Archer “ bad egg.” Professor Tocker’s View. Much more money than was justified had been spent in extending the Christchurch tramway service, stated Professor A. H. Tocker. Professor of Economics at Canterbury College, during an address to the Public Service Administration Society last night. He said that Christchurch was badly overtrammed. The speaker gave instances where, he <=aid, the mistakes of public servants—those employed bv the Government and also local bodies—had proved costly to the community. It was difficult, however, to distinguish between the mistakes of public servants and the mistakes of governments which employed them.