III

D.—l

PUBLIC WORKS FUND. The state of the Public Works Fund on the 31st March last (including a small asset of £78 due to Part I. under "The Government Loans to Local Bodies Act, 1886") was as follows: —

Honourable members will observe from the above table that, allowing for the liabilities, a debit balance of £6,064 existed on Part I. on 31st March last, or, in other words, that the available ways and means of that part of the Fund at that date were insufficient to cover the liabilities by that amount. The Government was, however, quite justified in incurring this slight excess, as the liabilities of £183,749 will only fall due by instalments extending over a year, as follows, viz.: June quarter, £66,476 ; September, £49,697 ; December, £46,056; and March quarter, 1894, £21,520. Long before these later payments fall due, the transfer proposed to be made to the fund from revenue will be available. 'As already stated, the Government proposes to transfer £250,000 from the Consolidated Fund for public-works purposes. In addition to this, the sum of about £160,000 will be available from released Sinking Funds, as also mentioned; while miscellaneous receipts and recoveries will probably amount to a further £7,000 or so. The following table shows the state of the Public Works Fund on the 31st March last, and an estimate of how it will probably stand on the 31st March next, if the proposals which I now have the honour to submit to the House are approved of.

Honourable members will notice that the Public Works Estimates are brought down in a slightly different form this year to that which has been usual during the last few years. It is only proposed to ask the House to vote one amount for each work —namely, the amount necessary to cover expenditure during the financial year, and for a further period of three months under the authority of the Public Revenues Acts. For the last few years two amounts have usually been included in the appropriations for each item: the first has been intended to cover the expenditure to come to charge within the financial year, and the second to cover (in addition to this) whatever liabilities might have been incurred and be still outstanding at the end of the year, as well as whatever further expenditure might come to charge during the first three months of the following financial year. The difference between the two amounts voted was sometimes very large. For instance, it was no less than £45,000 in one item (North Island Main Trunk Railway —south end) on last year's Public Works

Parts o{ Fund. Unexpended Balances Slst March, 1892. Receipts during 1892-93. Totals. Expenditure, Balances Year ended remaining, 31st March, 31st March, 1893. 1893. Liabilities existing, Slst March, 1893. Net Balances available, 31st March, 1893. 299,578 276,977 £ 219,444 7,581 £ 519,022 284,558 £ £ 341,337" 177,685 131,615 152,943 £ 183,749 45,611 £ Dr. 6,064 107,332 'art I. 'art II. Totals 570,555 227,025 472,952 330,628 803,580 229,360 101,268

Part I. Part II. Total. £ £ £ balances on 31st March, 1893 Credit from surplus revenue Released Sinking Funds vliscellaneous receipts 177,685 250,000 160,000 5,000 152,943 330,628 250,000 160,000 7,000 2,000 Totals ... 592,685 154,943 747,628 'roposed expenditure for 1893-94 ... 591,468 101,600 693,068 Estimated balances on 31st March 1894 1,217 53,343 54,560