RETRENCHMENT.

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2558, 4 September 1915, Page 3

RETRENCHMENT.

Sir, —I notice that in tho discussion on tho Financial Statement in Parliament yesterday, "Mr. Gi .Witty, M.P. for Riccarton,. and Mr. C. A. Wilkinson, M.P. for Egmont, urged retrenchment in tho. Public. Service. It'seems evident that theso' two' gentlemen havo not taken the. trouble to_ ascertain the. real facts, or they ■ would havo -been" moro guarded, in :.their remarks. ' : The war has already effected retrenchment in th 6 Public. Service, as will l be seen by. the following excerpt .taken from the Third Report of the Public Service Commissioner (page 27)"1t is estimated, as at April !, 1915, ? that classified salaries will be underspent by approximately £85,000 for all ■ Departments, including the Post and. "Telegraph, owing to tho absence of officers at J the war j but it : will be', necessary to sot against this an expenditure estimated at £29,000 for permanent and ..temporary, assistance .other than .that supplied to i tho. 'Defence: Department lor its special work." Here, • then, 'is an immediate saving of £56,000, and further savings are being effected every day- through Civil Servants enlist-in", the, position being that on V Civil Serjoining the. Army, as a private his -Civil Service salary ;ceases. : .Moreover, the' Public Service,, in, common with other, sections of the , community, expects -to - ; be hit. by* the war taxes. -Why should • the Service be hit twice for. the, same event Be • it' noted also that 'Public Servants have contributed £17,919 Bs. 9d. to War Relief. Funds. I r give lie exact , which Messrs. Avitty and Wilkinson can easily verify by looking at page 36 of "The' Public Service Journal" .of last month. If public policy' really did demand furtherreductions m: the Public, Service then Parliament must start at the top of the tree and .work downwards, that is, < to say, the Public : Service would expect reductions to. commence with tho Governor's salary, '.he salaries of his householdj _ Ministers' salaries, .'" Legislative Councillors' salaries', the salaries of. members of Parliament, the 1 salary of the .General Manager of 'Railways, and the 'salaries of the Public Service Commissioners.—l: am, etc., ... / JUNIUS. Wellington, September 2, 1915.