COUNTIES ASSOCIATION

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1014, 3 July 1930, Page 9

COUNTIES ASSOCIATION

CONFERENCE OPENED BY MINISTER ELECTORAL PROBLEMS Press Association AA ELLINGTON, AA’ednesday. j The biennial conference, of the New Zealand Counties’ Association was opened today by tho Hon. P. A. de la Ferrelle, Minister of Internal Affairs He mentioned that he had addressed a letter to the president of the association on tho subject of the franchise in combined districts for electricpower board, harbour board and hospital board elections. Tils proposal was to make a slight alteration in the county franchise for all elections by adopting a provision m the Municipal Corporations Act to the effect that in the case of a husband •and wife, any qualification possessed by either for enrolment as an elector should be possessed by each of them. ; Thus, both husband and wife would be always on the electors' roll. He sug- | gested also that the Act should be | amended by providing for plural vot- | mg, instead of the restriction at pres- : ent existing whereby each elector had | one vote. He thought this would help | help to equalise the position as existing between town and country areas. He assured the conference of the value set by the Government on the remits passed at such conferences and of the great assistance it was to the Government to have the various points j of view which arose out of tho discusj sions. In his presidential address Mr. A. E. I Jull suggested the conference might consider carrying out what he thought was the original intention of giving assistance in respect to rural roads by retaining for the Highways Board administration tho original scheme of main highways. All other roads, including the present secondary highways, should then be uniformly assisted out of the petrol tax, in proportion to the expenditure thereon to the amount that would give a reasonable relief to tho rural taxpayer.