A LICENSING ANOMALY.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 619, 23 September 1909, Page 5

A LICENSING ANOMALY.

i ; (Bj Teießrupb.-So'ccl'nl 6orr««oond«otl;^'■■':,' ,','".-'■ •--,.'•;,;"■ -/.Auckland, Septembers2l.,,' .-'A,-.deputation :frpm thb Huntly.;Town Board' waited on;thb:Hon.'Dr.,*Findlay (Minister for Justice) duringrhis-visit to:Huntly, land: ■that, a. repeal in' the Licensing: Act,; rendered; necessary., by;, an'..alteration'.: in.regard"' tb/'the licensing:fees,.as:tabulated in the consolidated sturulx>- of 1908,'' should", bo breught.-about. .' ■ :During.'the'"discussion- .an-; anomaly,' was .pdiiiied out. -[/According' to Section. 9S"of ,the, ; JjiconSing, 2, a /licensing",' comi' 'niittee',;:'when issuing-a ; certificate .'granting, or :i-enewihgja license', must'.state thb t fee for the license, ■Section., 139 'of the'A.ct ./providing • that - thi> annual; fee for -a publican's, license within the limits"of,.any borough; shall.'be 'JE4O, and outside' JS2s.':'• -.";.".■• ;Mr. J; P."' Bailey (chairman V of' the Hunll} ■Town'; 1 Board)- pointed ■ but;'that-owing- to an '.alteralion; .of the': ,law,:in : the.v 'consolidated statutes'towaboards would lose, J6ls : per.annum■ on "'each license. 1 granted: within:- their. districts,: application of. a. local licensed":victubller- : to v the Licensing/Bench,;to' have-liis ' fee "reduced:, from ..£4O '■• to £35. .Mr.' Bailey ..asked.>the.. Minister to,-do -what -he. could towards having 1 Act, of 1908 amended. / Mr.' V. B. Harps.inn., stated that he was the .publican'-.referred;to'by _..Mr. Bailey. He' instanced 'a caso in.vfhich,a publican who' was makibg'only a'bare living was.forced 1 to. pay.a :'fee of, X4o,'merely,'because;, the: district had been constituted, a town, district,', while large establishments, in with. an' annual tUrn.ovei'.;of 'thousandV.were,>paying...th6 same amount..- To his.mind:the prtsent-positio'n was' a fair-.one, and ,he..dissented, from 'the'yiew of. the .deputation, on,behalf i of -'struggling licenserholders,: who, he thought, had not been ■equitably treated'hitherto. '■, .- : /]>r.' Pindlay explained that the changeiri the law had- not. beon': intentionr.l. When the, statute.v were compiled,: it. was. not'intended to alter the rates, the alteration being'due to n mistake on the part-of/the .compilation comimitiee.- 'When a man obtained his license, originally,; he did eoori tho understanding that ho,was to pay i&SO a yeari' r and;if be objected to that amount,' he should not have made, ap? plication, j As Mr. Harris had.said,, it was. not ; fair that a house doing only.one-fiftieth part of- what-another-house was: doing: should-be .compelled to pay "the/same,fee,' It; was an' anomaly, but not thinki there was 1 ■■ a prospect, of change at.'present.'. .The point to be ; 'considered ; was' that. Parliament; had-■ not altered the law.' 1 .If tho ,law/was to'be altered it should bn'donoon som'erntionalibasis. ■ Tho accommadation-housb.'license i might, :to soino • extent;- meet the bbjcctibn:Mr. Harris, referred . :to.:' He would give the matter his attention, on his.return; to/Wellington,.and havean alteration, in -the Consolidated Statutes effected such as would rectify the mistake made in compila ; ; ;(ion. ':.' •;,' " --v •' ''/'-,','