CLEAN LOCAL POLITICS.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 9, Issue 572, 5 October 1920, Page 2

CLEAN LOCAL POLITICS.

BAN ON TRADING. THE £lO LIMIT. The present law provides that a member of the municipal corporation cannot hold his seat if he is financially interested in a contract made by the council, if the payment exceeds £5 in the case of a single contract or £lO altogether in any financial year. Mr. Sykes (Masterton) moved in the House of Representatives last week that in the cases oi borough having a population of 2000 or less, the limit should be extendea from £lO to £SO. He said that the restriction was unnecessary, and involved inconvenience in small towns, where the number of business men was limited. The amendment was supported Dy Mr. Horn (Wakatipu), who mentioned that in a southern township a broken culvert had re-. mained unmended for some time because the sole local storekeepei could not supply the materials foi repairs. , The Prime Minister said the amendment would be dangerous. This view was taken up by several other members, who thought that the amendment would open the door to jobbery and corruption. The strict law now in operation had made for clean local politics.

After brief discussion the amendment was lost on the voices. Mr. Young (Waikato) moved that the £lO restriction should not apply to newspaper advertisements. He pointed out that a member of the borough council might be a director of a local newspaper, which had tc handle the statutory advertising of the local body. Mr. McNicol (Pahiatua) said that country newspapers had to insert statutory advertisements and they also did job printing. He thought the amendments should apply to advertisements only, and that the printing should be subject to the same restrictions as other trading. The amendment was lost on the voices.