CENTRAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 194, 12 May 1921, Page 3

CENTRAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

MOTOR TAX V. TOLL-GATES.

The monthly meeting of the Council of the Central Chamber of Commerce was held yesterday afternoon. Mr. A. L. Hunt presided. The chairman referred to the amount «t credit of depositors in the Post Office Savings Bank, the average deposit being about .£37 per depositor. Mr. L. A. Edwards pointed ‘out that in America ’the average was .£l2 165., as against New Zealand’s £37 10s. Ho also referred to the Dominion’s external trade whicn -was larger per capita than. Britain s external trade. . . The special committee appointed to consider tho question of lifeboat s® rvlc ° for Wellington Heads recommended that a-> the Prime Minister had consented to obtain particulars in England, the matter should be left in abeyance. The resolutions forwarded by the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce with respect to Customs tariff revision were considered, 1 end after a short discussion it was resolved to express the chamber s sympathy with the appointment of a Royal Commission to inquire into the general incidence of taxation. The following suggested amendment of the Licensing Polls Act from the Westland Chamber of Commerce, for which support was sought, was considered:— "That tho Licensing Polls Act be amended in the direction of extending the period between licensing polls from three years to nine years, as an encouragement to hotel proprietors to extend their accommodation and improve the conveniences for the travelling public. Experience of late h<as shown in most cities and towns that the hotel accommodation is very inadequate for the requirements of travellers. Inquiry has elocited the knowledge that tho proprietors are not disposed to lay out largo sums in additions and improvements owing to tho precarious license tenure under tho 'three years’ poll. To improve the comiitions for tho benefit of the travellington public, who are increasing year by year, the amendment of the law suggested seemti most' desirable, and your chamber is invited 'to support that proposal to the Government accordingly. It was urged that no action should bo taken in the matter, but Mr. L. A. Edwards stated that visitors to tho Dominion had expressed the opinion that, the hotel accommodation in New Zealand was the worst in the world. As to whether an alteration of the period of taking a vote on the licensing question was the way to bring about an improvement of the hotel accommodation bo could not say. Anything that could be done to improve the accommomuKM oTTfotele should Ire <sone, whether they were licensed or unlicensed buildings. He was sure that it would not bo possible anywhere to get such hail ,'>"commod»tion n.» was the case on We West Coast. Mr. Hart a greed that there was room for improvement. Eventually it was agreed to take no action in the matter. Mr. L. A. Edwards introduced the question of providing better rogds. Motor traffic, he said, would! be the main traffic of the future, and suitable roads should be constructed to suit that traffic. The roads that were now being constructed, except tho tar-sealed roads of Taranaki, wero quite unsuitable for motor traffic, and he submitted a motion favouring a motor tax for the proper upkeep of main arterial roads. He contended that toll-gates were not a suitable way of raising revenue. The motion carried. It was also decided to ask the Government to bring down a scheme for the construction of ths arterial roads and submit same to the local bodies for consideration.