“MADE A GREAT NOISE”

Waikato Times, Volume 131, Issue 21907, 10 December 1942, Page 2

“MADE A GREAT NOISE”

J LOCAL BODIES CRITICISED ATTITUDE Tp HOSPITAL COSTS The Waikato Hospital Board circularised about 325 local bodies all over the Dominion seeking their views on the subject of united representations to the Government asking for relief from the present incidence of hospital taxation with a view to j hospital costs being borne out of ! Consolidated Funds or Social Securi ity taxation. ! At today’s meeting of the board j the secretary, Mr A. C. Burgess, rei ported having received 82 replies from city councils, borough councils, county councils and town boards. Sixty-five local bodies supported the representations, eight opposed them or merely received the communication and nine reported having referred the matter to the municipal or counties associations for appropriate action. Mr N. H. Beatson (Kawhia) criticised what he termed the tardiness of many local boides in replying to the board’s inquiry. He said that many local bodies deferred discussion on hospital costs until just before local body elections, “made a great noise then, and three months or so later subsided into silence.” Mr Beatson added that he was disappointed at the attitude of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Health on the subject of hospital costs. The Prime Minister seemed to be very willing to shelter behind the 1 war situation in evading the issue, for it was noticeable that the social j security and medical services had ! been enlarged. That legislation or j regulation was not prevented by the war, and therefore it was hard to understand why hospital costs were not similarly dealt with. Several members expressed the view that many of the local bodies had not replied directly to the board’s inquiry because they had written direct to the Minister on the subject. Members quoted instances that had come under their personal , notice. The secretary was instructed to again write to the 243 local bodies ■ inviting a reply to the board’s representations. Members present were: Messrs. F. Findlay (chairman), D. B. Livingstone, J. Price, S. C. B. Macky, W. T. Eyre, G. Smith, T. Hinton, A. E. Missen, J. Banks, A. Blackman, J. M. Stewart, N. H. Beatson, H. W. Wilson, W. Morrice, V. W. Simms and Mrs H. C. Ross, with the secretary, Mr A. C. Burgess, and medical supj erintendent, Dr. H. L. Gould.