N.Z. FINANCE

Waikato Times, Volume 97, Issue 1600, 31 May 1924, Page 7

N.Z. FINANCE

PROTECTING TAXPAYERS. i HAS ECONOMY BEEN PRACTISED? MR MASSEY REPLIES TO CRITICS. ! (By Telegraph—Special to Times.) WELLINGTON, Saturday. That the results of the last financial year entirely dispose of the criticism that there has been extravagance and excess of expenditure in Ihe administration of the railways, and llia'l the position of the I'oslal Department in regard to his assistance to the taxpayer lias improve'!, are features of a reply by the Minister of Finance. Hon. \Y. V. Massey, to criticism by a correspondent in the press. The criticism with which Mr Massey dealt concentrated, lie said, wholly on the expenditure without regard lo the revenue side- 0 f the balance sheet or to tiie inflation common to all values during the past decade. The futility of tin's reasoning at once became apparent when the revenue and expenditure accounts of the two chief re-venue-producing State undertakings—the railways and Use post office—were examined. Relation of Expenditure to Revenue. Quoting the ligures, Mr Massey staled that Ihe analysis of the relation of the appropriated expenditure to the revenue in ten years showed sum,, infercsting' results. Thus: I',) l.'l-l i, railways 7i.:>7 per cent, pos! office 93.11 per cent; .1923-2 i, railways 7-LlO per cent, post office 78.99 per f'enl. Tin's disposed of the charge of extravagance in llm railways, and showed thai the Postal Deparlmenl was improving in iis assistance to the taxpayer. Of Hie increased expenditure on cducalion. so per eenl of il was due !,, improved salary conditions for teachers, Ihe expansion of secondary education, and the increase in Ihe. number (1 f teachers. The provision of necessary additional accommodation, and the increase in departmental expenditure lo nice! ihe development tlial had lakeu place j n \.\ u , | as t | on years, amounted lo t 1.500,000, but being in non-revenue producing departments could in.! In- charged lo working expenses as in Ihe case of the railways and Ihe post office. Public, j servants' salaries for instance increas- j rd by over 50 per cenl, and material i hart increased in some instances bv 200 per cenl. Where Increased Expenditure Goes. Criticism" of Ihe increased expenditure of Ihe past year could, said Mr Massey, he effectively disposed of by giving proper regard to Ihe fad that the railways and post office, which are obviously no charge againsl Ihe appropriations Of laxed revenue, were j responsible for all bid. £200.000, of which £90,000 was for education. The I

remaining increases were quite reasonable in view of lhe expansion of stale activity and lhe growth of population. The expenditure, which had increased abnormally during the war, had been contracted. The reduction had nol only been maintained, but the expenditure last year was £1 15,000 below-that of the preceding year. Notwithstanding the additional natural increase in administration costs, the improvement in services, the provision of increased facilities, scale increases in wages, and the fact that prices were slill far above the pre-war level, the Government's economy policy had in three years resulted in a saving of £3,735.000 in expenditure, and the saving in interest and sinking fund charges, and other outside accounts, brought thai figure up lo IT),noo,000.

A Serious Duty. "The growth of population in ten years has increased the liabilities of the departments, whilst the effeci of the charges for war loans and pensions cannot ho ignored," said Mr Massey, in conclusion. "My most serious duly al present is in keeping the expenditure well within (ho revenue, and preventing waste and extravagance, i do nol resent criticism: I welcome it, because it gives mo the opportunity of stating the other side. 1 also welcome any support iii securing proper economy in public expenditure, because 1 realise thai willi our enormous liabilities- and taking' notice of the commercial outlook, any serious increase in public expenditure at present may. and probably will, mean financial embarrassmenl in the nol far distant future."