SETTLED AT LAST

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 721, 22 July 1929, Page 16

SETTLED AT LAST

TAKAPUNA’S DISPUTE WITH « HEALTH DEPARTMENT CHARGE REDUCED An amicable settlement has been reached in a long-standing dispute between the Department of Health and the Takapuna Borough Council. Some twelve months ago, when its sanitary inspector resigned in order to take up an appointment with the City Council, the Takapuna Council appointed in his stead a registered plumber to administer the plumbing and building by-laws. This officer not being qualified to do sanitary inspections, an arrangement was entered into with the Health Department whereby that branch of the boi-ough work was supervised by a departmental inspector. For this the borough was called upon to pay an annual charge of £2OO. When the council became aware that the time occupied in borough sanitary inspections averaged about six hours monthly, efforts were made to have the charge reduced, but these were of no avail. When the Hon. A. J. Stallworthy was last in Auckland, the manifest injustice of the charge was brought to his notice and he promised to give consideration to the request for a reduction. Advice has now been received from j the Minister that the department is j prepared to reduce the charge for its | services to £IOO per annum. The Mayor of Takapuna, Mr. J. W. Williamson, stated on Saturday that j The amended scale is more in keeping \ with the amount of work entailed j than the original arrangement. As ! showing the little call on the time of the department, Mr. Williamson men- ! tioned that for the year ended March 21 only 15 cases of notifiable diseases in the borough were reported. Of these, four were cases of tuberculosis j ot long standing, and were obviously contracted in the borough.