H—4s

finalized during the financial year. This resulted in further expenditure of £9,078 being brought to charge. The figure of £2lO for works in progress represents initial costs of the Nelson assembly hall and offices which it is expected will be completed during the coming financial year. It is also anticipated that a small central pay office building at Gisborne will be completed, and that an assembly hall and offices at Bluff will be well advanced in construction before the 31st March, 1948. The total book value of buildings erected (less depreciation) or in progress as at 31st March, 1947, was £32,565, an increase of £8,469 as compared with 31st March, 1946. It is estimated that the cost of the buildings being erected at Nelson, Bluff, and Gisborne will be not less than £30,000, so that the total commitments of the Buildings Fund as at 31st March, 1947, were not less than £63,000. For the year ended 31st March, 1947, the Commission has again set aside £5,000 from the Co-operative Contracts Fund and £5,000 from the National Administration Fund as additions to the Buildings Reserve Account, making a total of £50,000 in this account as at 31st March, 1947. In accordance with the policy initiated in 1944-45, the Commission has again charged the funds of ports where buildings have been erected with a maintenance levy of 5 per cent, on the original capital cost. For the year ended 31st March, 1947, these levies amounted to £1,329. After provision for depreciation (£728) and administration charges (£34), the balance of £567 has been transferred to Accumulated Funds, making a total of £794 available as at the 31st March, 1947, to meet future repairs and maintenance charges on these buildings. (c) CONSOLIDATED (VOTE, " LABOUR " ) FUND (See Appendix, page 87) Although the parliamentary appropriation from Consolidated Fund (vote, " Labour " ) for this section of the Commission's administrative expenditure is £12,250 for the year ended 31st March, 1947, as compared with £12,670 for 1945-46, it has since been found necessary to include a further £1,454 in respect of 1946-47 in the estimated appropriation required for 1947-48. This will represent a net increase of £1,034 as against the appropriation for 1945-46. Of this amount £626 is due to increased costs of members' fees and travelling-expenses. Additional administrative salaries consequent upon the reorganization necessitated by the establishment of the part-time Commission as from the Ist July, 1946, account for the balance of £4OB. The net expenditure provided by way of charges or grants from Consolidated Fund (vote, " Labour " ) for the full period 1940-47 now aggregate £79,644, or an average of £11,378 per year. The estimated net expenditure of £17,079 for 1947-48 makes provision for the salaries and expenses of the full-time Commission which is expected to be reconstituted shortly. (d) CO-OPERATIVE CONTRACTS FUND (See Appendix, page 75) The accounts of the Co-operative Contracts Fund for the year ended 31st March, 1947, again show very gratifying results in so far as the profit-earning income is concerned. While there has been a reduction of £157,075 in total income as compared with 1945-46, this .was expected in view of the cessation of services performed on behalf of American authorities at Auckland, and of night shift, Sundays, and similar special overtime work, which operated for the full financial year during 1946-47. On the other hand, 82-61 per cent., or £1,911,993, of the total income of £2,314,627 was profit-earning during 1946-47, as against 74-19 per cent., or £1,833,713, in 1945-46, an increase of £78,280, or 8-42 per cent. It will be noted that while the increase in co-operative contracts income was £9,500, equivalent contracts income has risen by £68,780. This is largely due to the fact that the Commission assumed responsibility as from the 2nd December, 1946, for the payment of all wages, &c, due to waterfront workers employed by the New Zealand

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