The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24, 1921. LOCAL BODY EXPENDITURE.

Hokitika Guardian, 24 October 1924, Page 2

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24, 1921. LOCAL BODY EXPENDITURE.

The Audit Office is paying a good deal of attention to the legality of local Ixuly expenditure, particularly in respect to members’ travelling expenses. There was the. case reported the other day of the Mukara County Council, where the balance sheet had been tagged in respect to the allowance of £1 Is per day for travelling expenses.

There is the oft-quoted case of Audi-tor-General v. Ewing which was supposed to settle this point. In that suit a decision was given bv Mr Justice Williams, interpreting the law as authorising the payment of a reasonable sum of so much per mile, or according to a scale of distances, or a fixed sum to defray the travelling expenses. The Audit Office to-day has a particular: interpretation which requires suoh expenses charged, to be both reasonable

ami actual, and it is in following up this attitude that the Makara councillors iind themselves in conflict with the Department. Apparently like all other local bodies, the Makara Council acted in good faith on the decision of .Mr- .Instiic Williams, as. high a legal authority as could he wished, in 1 is time or since. The travelling allowance drawn at Makara was LI Is, which docs not seem unreasonalju*. However it is a question whether it was the actual, seeing that the train fare involved was Is. Whether the railway service was suitable for the meeting we do not know, that is, permitting arrival and departure in time for and after the transaction of the business of tire day, hut there would lie meals to paid for at- all events, so that tire train expenditure would not lie tire maximum. 'lire members themselves who must la; allowed some judgment in the matter under the (Supreme Court decision, considered the guinea reasonable, and propose to hack their view by allowing the matter to go to Court. This, it appears, may lie done under the Declaratory Judgments Act, and steps are being taken accordingly. The result of the case has a wider Louring than the local body involved immediately. .Many ether local bodies tire in the same position, and it would be well to have the matter settled finally. If the law is not clear it should he made plainer. It remains to he seen how far the judgment of the late Justice Williams will stand in these more modern times.