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Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 18, Issue 1141, 9 October 1871, Page 2

We make the following extracts from the Auditor-General's report of the Public Accounts for 1869 70. Any comment on theui would be supernous : In compliance with the provisions of the 60th section of " The Public Revenues Act, 1867," I have the honor to transmit, for the purpose ot being laid before tjie- General Assembly, my Report on the Colonial Treasurer's Abstract of Receipts and Expendituie for the year 1869-7 Q. Warrants.—The warrant given by Hi* Excellency tjie- Governor on the 25th June, 1870 (the only one affecting expenditure of the year 1869-70 that has reached the Audit Office), amounts to £1,318,505 13s Yd. The expenditure charged in the accounts for \>he

year is £1,593,182 18s, exclusive of the unauthorized expenditure provided for by the Appropriation Act of 1870, amounting to £74,634 13s 3d, and shown in the accounts of the year under consideration, but not carried into the total. The very large amount of unauthorized expenditure in each year, the great discrepancy between the extent of the Governor's warrant and the amount of the expenditure, and the fact that the warrant was not issued until after all the payments of the year were made, render it incumbent on the AuditorGeneral to call the attention of the Legislature to the very imperfect check that the law seems to impose on the issue of public moneys. It is scarcely necessary to add that the whole of the expenditure without the Governor's warrant was illegal, and a direct encroachment on the prerogatives _ of the Crown. By an unalterable provision of the Constitution Act, no part of Her Majesty's revenue within New Zealand shall be issued except in pursuance of warrants under the hand of tiie Governor directed to the Public Treasurer thereof. It may be a serious question whether the Governor is not absolutely required by the Constitution Act, and as the legal custodian of the public purse, to prevent the unauthorized issue of the Queen's revenues. Whenever this power shall be exercised, no issue from the Consolidated Fund in excess of the votes of the Legislature could be made without the concurrence of Her Majesty's representative. ******* Balance Sheet, 'page 7. Sections 14 and 15 of "The Public Revenues Act, 1867," authorize the Colonial Treasurer, under the authority of an Order in Council, to borrow from the Bank, or elsewhere, during the recess of Parliament, any sum not exceeding £60,000, the money to be borrowed by way of overdraft on the Pub lie Account at the Bank, or upon the security of a Deficiency Bill. Acting on this authority, the Bank, at the request of the Colonial Treasurer, on the 7th (or Bth) of May, 1869, placed the sum of .£§o.ooo to the credit of the Consolidate') Fund in the Public Account, and this amount appeared in the Balance Sheet of the year 1868-69, as if it had really been revenue, but no corresponding entry was made to show the liability to the Bank. The effect of this has been to make the revenue of that year apparently ,£60,000 more than it was in fact; and as that sum again appears in the Balance Sheet as moneys lying to the credit of the Treasury at the Bank, the same sum does service twice, without a cross " entry showing the indebtedness to the Bank As the overdraft was not repaid or in any way disturbed during the year 1869 70, the Revenue Account still shows ,£60,000 more at credit than it should do; or, reduced to the most concise expression, the balance shown at credit in the Bank (p. 9), instead of £175,599 0s sd, should be £115,599 0s sd, because £60,000 was due to the Bank, and is nowhere shown in the Public Accounts as a debt. It is also to be observed that, as ilie Revenues Act does not allow the money to be borrowed when the Parliament is sitting, the Legislature could not intend such overdrafts to be left outstanding from year to year. * * * * * * * Page 30 — lnterest on Debentures hypothecated refunded on release of Bonds, .£977 Is Bd. It appears that bonds to the value of £IOO,OOO (see page 90, Accounts, 1868-69) were hypothecated for an advance of £BO,OOO. The lender was paid interest on the lpan, and had no plaim to the interest accruing on the coupons. .£40,000 of bonds were first released, and the overdue coupons cut off. The Treasury in the Public Accounts took no notice of the coupons having been cut off on this occasion ; but when the remaining bonds (£60,000) were released, the coupons cut off (amounting to £1,000) were treated in the Public Accounts a.v if they had been actually paid, and are charged against " Permanent Charges" as interest on Consolidated Loan, and the sum of £977 Is 8d brought to receipt as a credit of " Miscellaneous Expenses." I By the fictitious payment of <£l,ooo, the Treasury is enabled to place the

sum of £977 Is 8d to the credit of »u annual vote, and thus manifestly the advantage of lining at its disposal the sum of £977 Is 8d for Miscellaneous Expenses in excess of the vote, as under the }sth section of "The Public Revenues Act, 1868," the effect of crediting the vote is to increase the amount for expenditure. It is further observed that interent allowed by the Bank on credit balance* of the Public Account is credited to the Miscellaneous vote. It is consideied tlvd'j this accrued interest belongs to no particular vote, and should be shown as Incidental Reeeipts. If this course h.id been adopted, the sura of £B6B 12s 3d, and that of £977 Is Bd, should be taken from the vote for Miscellaneous, which would leave an unauthorized expenditure of £536 12s 2d, instead of a saving of £1,308 15s 9d, as shown at page 147 of the printed account.