STATE CONTRACTS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 210, 31 May 1920, Page 5

STATE CONTRACTS

STATEMENT BY ME," COATES,

The Minister of Pu'blic Works (lion. >T. G. Coatcs) uiado a statement on Saturday regarding the protest recorded at a recent meeting of State miners against tho adoption of the system of private contracting in connection with tho construction of Government railways. Mr. Coiites said the Public Works Department wished to adopt a system which would offer ail incentive to get worlc done and out of the way. The system which it was proposed to adopt was an ordinary contract so far as the Department was concerned, but he had been approached by a number of cipencnced men who have been for some timo employees of the Public Works Department with that tlioy should take the contract in co-operation. They would elect their managers, and would enter into a bond in tho usual way. To meet them in the matter of finance, the Department would endeavour to assist in finding material. Id every other way the system would l>o that of ordinary contracting. Tho men "would tender for tho whole job, and would 6lmre the contractor's profit. This was different from the present co-opcrativo system, where tho men worked for a period on a job which had been valued by the engineers at a certain rate. The present proposal was to givo out the whole job, and offer an incentive to get the work done, which was what tho Department wanted.