Plea for Taranaki.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIX, Issue 74, 18 July 1914, Page 5

Plea for Taranaki.

THE EDUCATION BOARD. DEPUTATION TO THE MINISTER. 1 (Special to "The Post.") Wellington, July 18. Two Taranaki members, Messrs J. B. Hine (Stratford), and H. Okey (Taranaki) waited upon the Hon. James Allen, Minister of Education, yesterday, and raised strong objections to the i abolition of the Taranaki Education Board which has been in existence ever since the Education Act came into operation. The members contended that a» there was to be no reduction in th» number of Boards in the North Island, it was unreasonable that such a capable and efficient body as th« Taranaki Board had always proved itself should be wiped out of existence, and they further submitted that the position would be met by including the Ohura portion of the Auckland district in Taranaki,,,?and one board district would then suffioa ifbr Auckland, instead of two, at proposed in the Bill, and Taranaki could be retained.

The Minister suggested that evidence on these matters should b».< brought before the Education Committee. He remarked that he wa* prepared to consider alterations of the boundaries proposed in the Bill, but at the same time laid it down very definitely that the number of Board districts provided for in tk» Bill must not be increased.