Thousands Spent in Odds and Ends

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 480, 9 October 1928, Page 12

Thousands Spent in Odds and Ends

STATE’S SPENDINGS SUPPLEMENTARY ESTIMATES (THE SUN'S Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON. Monday. The rise of a shilling a day in the pay of a policeman does not sound much when said quickly, but what it means in a lump sum is revealed in the Supplementary Estimates put before Parliament to-day, one item in the list being £21,544 in the way of extra pay for the Police Force, of which £16.972 is incurred through the payment of an extra shilling a dey to 930 constables in the service. Another interesting item in the list is £2,000 expenses incurred by the visit of the trans-Tasman airmen. The total of the Supplementary Estimates is £239,252, plus an extra £ 14.39 S in the Public Works Fund. There are heavy additions to the votes for naval defence, agriculture, highways, and State forests. DRILL HALL FOR AUCKLAND

In the naval defence vote there is' £11,500, representing the cost of sending cruisers to Samoa, £3,500 for a drill hall at Auckland, and £7,000 for repairs to the fuel ship Nucula. Other departmental votes represent the usual miscellany of official odds and ends.

Another £I,OOO is voted to pay for the entertainment of various distinguished visitors. There is also a grant of £4OO to pay the expenses recently incurred through the visit of Air Marshall Sir John Salmond. Contributions to touring parties abroad include £I,OOO to the Umpire Parliamentary delegation, £SOO to the Olympic team. In consideration of liis public services in connection with Summit Road summit reserves, Christchurch, there is a vote of £3OO to Mr. H. G. Ell.

Historical research is represented by £ 300 to the Maori Ethnological Board as expenses of the coming publication of “The French at Akaroa.” Compassionate allowances include £3,000 to Lady Sim, £1,500 to the widow of the late Mr. Justice A.lpers, £9OO to the widow of the late Mr. J. W. Poynton, while there is £4,000 towards improvements at the Massey Memorial, Wellington. AUCKLAND'S TRANSPORT INQUIRY

The expenses of the Auckland Transport Commission are represented by a further £2,000, making the total cost of the commission £4,100.

There is £I,OOO on account of compensations recofnmended by the recent commission which investigated the confiscations of native land after the Maori Wars.

The motor-ship Maui Pomare gets a place in the list through £2BB compensation to the Niue fruitgrowers, on account of the recent banana losses, and £6O towards the cost of the inquiry. Additional guarantee on egg exports is listed as £ 500, and on pork exports £5,000.

The cost of reduced freights on fertilister is indicated by another £27,090, in addition to £75,000 voted in fhe main estimates.

Other items of passing interest are £2 to replace cash lost in the Mercer Post Office fire, and £23 demanded through the successful operations of burglars in the Post Office at Kumeu.