LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS.

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 232, 1 November 1940, Page 4

LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS.

THERE will be general satisfaction that the Government has recognised the weight of opinion against postponing the local body elections, due in May next, on account of the war. The announcement in Parliament last week that they will be held as usual puts an end to a state of uncertainty which it was felt was being unduly prolonged. There now remains an interval of about seven months in which to prepare for the event. Early and serious consideration should, therefore be given by electors to the various questions arising out of the management of their local affairs, as well as to the. welfare of local government in general. In particular, an examination of the position into which local government is drifting as the result of the steady encroachments by the Government in its zest for centralisation is urgently necessary. The strength and independence of local governing authorities give backbone and stability to a nation, and stimulate the. sense of individuality among its citizens with bureaucratic centralisation must inevitably destroy through the operations of mass methods of administration. One of the dangers of this situation is the attempt, which must be resisted to amalgamate the local bodies in larger administrative a,reas, thus depriving them of their individuality and independence. Another question worthy of the closest attention now that the opportunity of expressing an opinion is about to be presented is the much-needed overhaul of policies, programmes and expenditures to bring these into something like real conformity with wartime conditions. A clear mandate will be necessary to compel sudh a revision, otherwise the present imprudent attempts to compromise: between, peacetime requirements and wartime essentials will continue. People, get into the habit of thinking that because a thing is desirable it is necessary to have it, even if this means either borrowing the money or extorting more from heavily-burdened ratepayers. The time has come to look at such propositions from a different angle, namely, whether they can be done without. We must learn to makeshift with what we have in order to increase the resources in the national pool for the war effort. In pursuance of this policy we may accomplish that which is long overdue, a substantial reduction in the cost of local government. These and other questions are in the hands of the electors. They should give them serious. thought. It will be for them to decide whether they are to be faced in a bold and practical spirit, or simply allowed to drift along as before.