H—4s

Future commitments include the building of modern assembly halls and offices at the ports of New Plymouth and Oamaru, and alterations to an assembly hall at the port of Timaru. The estimated expenditure by the Commission on these buildings will be approximately £30,000 and to provide towards their cost the Commission has appropriated a further £20,000 from National Administration Fund (see Section (e)) to Buildings Reserve, making a total of £95,000 in that account. Annual maintenance charges in the nature of cleaning, heating, and lighting are a direct charge on National Administration Fund levies of ports where buildings have been erected (with the exception of Tauranga and Whangarei, where these charges are met by the respective Harbour Boards). These port funds also receive contributions towards such costs from Harbour Boards to the extent that such charges were met by the Boards prior to the Commission erecting new buildings. The Commission, however, has undertaken the full responsibility for major repairs and maintenance of its buildings and for depreciation on them. In order to spread these costs equitably, a " buildings maintenance levy " of 5 per cent, on original cost is made annually on all completed buildings, and this also is charged against port National Administration Fund levies. The total of such levies for the year ended 31st March, 1950, credited to Buildings Fund Revenue Account was £3,448 ; of this amount, £373 was spent on maintenance, &c., £1,926 set aside for depreciation, £B6 represents the Commission's internal administration assessment of per cent, on fund incomes, and the balance of £1,063 has been transferred to Accumulated Funds Account. This makes a total of £3,705 available to meet future repairs and maintenance charges on buildings. (c) CONSOLIDATED (VOTE, " LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT") FUND (see Appendix, page 96) The parliamentary grant from Consolidated Fund (vote " Labour and Employment ") Avas £17,160 for 1949-50, a reduction of £7O on the 1948-49 appropriation. The net expenditure provided by way of charges or grants from Consolidated Fund for the ten years 1940-50 now aggregates £131,113, or an average of £13,111 per year. The estimated expenditure for 1950-51 is £18,777, less a surplus of £2,952 from 1949-50, leaving a net estimated expenditure of £15,825. (d) CO-OPERATIVE CONTRACTS FUND (see Appendix, page 80) The Co-operative Contracts Fund total income has increased to £3,543,272 for the year ended 31st March, 1950, which is £312,190 greater than the total income for year ended 31st March, 1949. This increase is accounted for mainly by the increase in basic rate of wages, which rose from 3s. 10|d. per hour to 4s. per hour from Ist June, 1949, with corresponding increases in co-operative contract rates. The total number of contracts for 1949-50 was 3,850 a decrease of 329 (or nearly 8 per cent.) on the total for 1948-49, and cargo handled amounted to 5,325,873 tons, which was 411,724 tons (or 7 per cent.) less than 1948-49. These decreases are accounted for by the fact that, owing to the waterside workers refusing to work overtime, the Commission's Order was suspended at the Port of Auckland on 30th June, 1949, ports of Wellington, Lyttelton, and Bluff on 19th July, 1949, ports of Dunedin and Port Chalmers on 21st July, 1949, and all other ports under the Commission's jurisdiction on 26th July, 1949. The Suspension Order was revoked as from 21st August, 1949, and in the meantime all vessels were worked non-contract—-that is, on a wage basis. This mainly accounts for the increase in non-contract income from £413,835 to £673,259. The period of suspension of the Order is further reflected in the lower percentage of profit-earning income, which at £2,869,125 represents 80-97 per cent, of total income, as compared with 87-16 per cent, in 1948-49. Net profit at £309,422 is £16,258 less than in 1948-49 and is equal to lOf per cent, on profit-earning income, as compared with 11| per

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