CITY COUNCIL.

Globe, Volume IX, Issue 1296, 15 May 1878, Page 3

CITY COUNCIL.

Tuesday, Mat 14. A special meeting of the Council was held at 4 p.m. Present —Cis. Ick (chairman), BuddenkLn, Toomer, Pratt, Briggs, Jameson, and Bird, The Chairman said the meeting had been called for the purpose of passing the accounts of the year. An abstract of the receipts and expenditure of the Council for that period, duly audited, had been printed and placed on the table for some days. He would therefore ask some Councillor to move a resolution under the clause of the Act passing the accounts, and requesting the Mayor to sign the same._ Cr. Briggs said, in the absence of his Worship the Mayor, who was chairman of the finance committee, it would perhaps be as well for him to move the adoption of the accounts as now submitted. He would therefore move—“ That the abstract of accounts of the Council for the year ended March 31st, as audited and presented, be received, and that his Worship the Mayor be requested to sign the same.” He might say that lie understood the question had been raided whether they could meet to pass the accounts, as his Worship the Mayor was not present to sign them, but he understood from the [town clerk that the solicitor was of opinion that they could meet and pass ■the accounts, the Mayor signing them on his return. Under clause 131 of the Municipal Corporations Act, the treasurer of every hr rough was required to forward to the Government, on or before the Ist June in each year an abstract of the accounts of the borough, signed by the so that there was ample time for this to be done, prior to the Ist June. Now, as to the accounts themselves, ho wished to say one or two words. He would first refer to the auditors’ report at the end of the accounts. It was as follows :—“ Having certified the correctness of the City accounts, as shown by the books and supported by vouchers, rate-rolls, and lists of uncollected rates, to March 31st, 1878,_we have nothing further to report, except calling your attention to the uncollected rates of 1874-5-6. These, we think, should have been collected or written off the books if bad.” The suggestion made by the auditors, he might say, bad been attended to. The finance committee had met and instructed the Town Clerk to write off all items of rates which it was felt were irrecoverable, and this had been done, bpeaking of the accounts themselves, he wished to direct the attention of the Council to two or three items in the borough fuud account, under the head of receipts. These were-Fines, Resident Magistrate’s Court, .£lO7 ss; dog tax, £525; weights and measures, £l6 2a6d_; and publicans' licenses, <£lsol 15s. His object in doing this was to point out an anomaly wiiich existed. With reference to the first item, fines in the Resident Magistrate’s Court, that_ he -was sorry to say did not include any fines inflicted on publicans for breaches of the Licencing Act. This seemed to him very anomaLus, because the Council received the fees payable under the Art, but not the fines_ for the breach of it. '!he same remark applied with equal force to the item of dog tax. The Council had to pay for the collars, receiving the fees payable, but they did not receive the fines inflicted for the non-registration of dogs. With regard to the subject of weights and measures also it was the same. His opinion was that the in pector of weights and measures should be an olfi"er of the Council, and that it should receive all fe s and fines and take the management of the working of the Act. At present they received the fees, but the fines -went the tame way as those inflicted in the cases of unregistered dogs and offending publicans. He had brought this matter forward because it was one of considerable import mce to the city, and one which he thought should he referred to the Govrumeut, with a view to an alteration being made in the present system. In the assets and li vbilit es of the borough fund there was an item put down as an asset—asphalte rate, £2s47—which was more or loss delusive, inasmuch as though the amount had been token from the hooks, no allowance had been made for corners of sir- ots and places like that in front of the Post office, where the Corporation had to bear the whole cost of the work without anything being recouped from owners. This would reduce the item shown as an asset. Bir4-Coßsi<ißrabl7?J Well,» good deal,

"then there was an item as an asset of £99 os fid for the asphalting of the right-of-way whic i had hsen decid 1 d against the Council in the Resident Magistrate’s Court recently. The two items he hit referred to would, therefore, reduce their assets somewhat. He had no further remarks Io make on the accounts, and begged to move the resolution for their adoption, which he had read. Cr. Bird seconded the motion. Did he understand Or. Brings aright that the Council never received any fim s for unregistered dogs, or for breaches of the Licensing Act? He had always thought that all fines inflicted within the borough went into the borough funds. Cr. Briggs, in reply, said that he might explain to Cr. Bird that the Council only received tines levied under their own hy-laws, {nothing else.

Cr. Bird, under tho'c circumstances, quite agreed with Cr. Briggs that a very great anomaly existed, and he should like to see some steps taken to alter the present system. Ho should like to ask whether the valuation of the city surveyor of plant, &c., which was put down as an asset in the accounts for £(5119, was made upon any basis. Cr. Briggs said that the town clerk had informed him that a very full inventory had been taken of all plant, &c., the items of which had been valued by the city surveyor. Cr. Pratt said he thought that a representation from the Council on the subject of fines, brought forward by Cr. Briggs, would have the desired effect. It was an obvious anomaly that when breaches of laws for which they received the fees took pi ce they should not receive the fines also He would cull attention to the fact that it would act most prejudicially with regard to the d'g tax, for instance, because if half the people did not register their dogs they would not only lose half their revenue of the fees, but also the large amount of the fines. He thought, therefore, that a strong representation should be made to the Government in the matter.

Cr. Bird suggested that this was a subject which should be brought before the proposed Municipal conference. The Chairman agreed wi’h Cr. Bird. It was a very important matter to the city, and ho would see that the town clerk made a note of the suggestion. Cr. Jameson asked if all the city reserves were included in the statement appended to the abstract of accounts. There was Cathedral square and several triangular pieces of land which had not been included. The Chairman explained that these pieces of land were only under the control of the Council, and they were not actually their property. The Town Clerk said that he was instructed in pi eparing the returns of reserves he had to send up to the Government that he was not to include any reserves for public purposes. Cr. Bird desired the public to be made aware of the small amount of reserves possessed by a city the size of Christchurch. The motion was then put and agreed to, and the meeting terminated.