COSTS MAY BE TREBLED

Chronicle (Levin), 14 October 1946, Page 4

COSTS MAY BE TREBLED

The local Body Elections EFFECTS OF NEW BiLL § ___ , "We will find that our costs in condweting the election wiU not he donbled, hut possibly more than trehled," said the phairman of ihe Hprowhenpa County Couneil, Mr. G. A. Monk, at a meeting of that body on Friday when the minutes □f the last expcutiVe meeting of the New Zealand Counties' Association were tabled, leadlng to a discussion pn the Local Elections and Poljs Bill which was recently passed by Parliament. , „ ,, Mr. Monk said members of the council would have noted that the local hody elections had been postponed from May to November under the Bill. Members of local bodies had not favoured the extepsion, as their fin.ancial year ended on March ?1 and to have November elections meant breaking the year's work. The Bill also brought about a considerable change in the eonduct of the election, and made for very cumbersome working when compared with past proeedure. -The difficulties which would have to be met by returning officers in rural communities would be very much greater than those encountered by returning officers in a general election. Provision had- been made for the use of Parliamentary rplls at the local body elections, which meant that a man could attend at a polling bootd, say his name was on the Parliamentary roll but not the local body roll and then he could vote by deelaration. The Horoy/henua County embraeed four different electorates, which _ would result in the use of four different Parliamentary rolls. The staffs at polling booths would require to be very much larger than hitherto to cope with the work. Cr. J. D. Aitchison: We will have to pay for it. The chairman: Yes, we will have to pay for it. We will have to give consideration to the very onerous job handed to our clerk- and make recognition of it. The Government was determined to put it on the Statute Book and it is there now.

Mr. Monk added tnat rne evidence presented to the Local Bills Committee of the House by the New Zealand Counties' Association and the Municipal Association had been very carefully prepared. The- counCil's clerk (Mr. F. H. Hudson) had given evidence which had very greatly impressed the committee. Cr. A. J. Gimblett remarked that it was rather noticeable that the Government did not mind extending the life of local bodies, despite the opposition it had raised at one time to an extension of the life of a government. The chairman : I do not think the local bodies themselves wanted the extension. Mr. Monk said the Counties' Association had also submitted evidence on the Local Government Commission Bill, which was now on the Statute Book. As a result of the submissions the composition of the commission had been altered from three to four members— a judge of the Supreme Court, -a member with a knowledge of local body administration appointed by the Goyernment, one appointed on the reeommendatian of rural interests and one appointed on the reeommendation of urban interests. The discus'sion was not pursued further. _________________