APPROPRIATION BILL

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 65, 11 December 1918, Page 5

APPROPRIATION BILL

: 9 TEACHERS' SALARIES REGRADING OF STATE SERVICES Aβ usual ~there are a number of interesting clauses in tho Appropriation Hill, passed by Parliament at its rieuijj. Ono of them is of some interest to members of Parliament. Already thoy have been awarded something m the nature of a war bonus, although it is in tho form of postage stamps. Now they are to bo given something more by way of travelling expenses. There have been complaints for some years about the travelling expenses allowed to , .members, tho allowance being such reasonable sums as the member'may have actually paid niulo travelling. It is now provided that when a member is travelling to the General Assembly he shall bo entitled to expenses, over and above locomotion expenses, at the rate of £1 per day. Authority is taken for tho payment of bonuses to all .persons in the public service, including temporary employees and persons, such as school teachers, who are under tho control of an education board. I'or the purpose of encouraging the production and refinement of mineral oil in New Zealdnd the Minister of Finance is authorised to pay out of the Consolidated Fund by way of loan any sum or sums not exceeding in the aggregate the sum ot .£1)000.

The Commissioner of Taxes is given discretionary .power to exempt sports grounds from the payment of taxation ' I revision is made for the rejrrnding of officers in all Departments of tho public service, the regrading to telto effect as from April 1, 1919, and the salaries on the new grading to be paid from that ■ ji j salaries and increments provided by tho new grading are not to be lesg than those in the repealed tn-ade. Increased contributions are to 'bo made by the Government to the Teachers' Superannuation Fund. The annual .payment instead of being 417,000 will bo .£43,000. Similarly the amount to Iμ paid lo the Public Service Superannuatr??/,n?U i. nd ' n is to be in «eased from i.48,000 to .£86,000. A clause validates, tho expenditure made by local bodies in connection with recruiting, and local bodies arc authorised to contribute towards the peace celebration funds.

It appears that certain advances made by the Government out of the Consolidated Fund' against butter and cheose purchased from them on behalf of the Imperial Government were illegal. Those advances are now authorised. _ The payment of advances not exceeding JE75.000 for Waimarino hush fires relief is authorised, and the Minister is empowered to raise sums not exceeding the amount At forth, at rates not to exceed 4J per cent. A refund of .£2O towards the expenses incurred by Mr. J. T. M. Hornsby in connection with the Rangi Kerehoma inquiry is authorised. There is a clause providing .for increases in the pay of teachers, and in addition to the amount voted by Parliament the Minister of Finance is authorised to issno and apply out of tho Consolidated Fund, such sum or sums not exceeding .£IIB,OOO in any one year as may be appropriated by Parliament. Also the Governor-General-in-Cmmcil may make regulations under the Education Act, 1914, to provide for the regrnrling of teachers. There is the same protection in this clause as there- was in the other clause dealing with a regrading of the nublic service—that in no ' case under the new grade is a teacher to receive less than under the repealed grading. The salary of the representative of the Native race in the 'Executive Council is increased to ,£7OO a year, in the event of there being only one representative of the Maori people in the Executive Council. _-_