COUNTY COUNCILS' CONFERENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 60, 13 July 1907, Page 2

COUNTY COUNCILS' CONFERENCE.

Per Press Association. Wellington, July 12. The County Councils' Conference passed the following resolution: "That ii] view of tlw aub.siclie.-j grunted in daust ini of the Local Government liill, the following take its place—ltor any sum mvived for a rate levied of */>d in the C, the sum payable shall be at the rate of os in the for every additional eighth of a penny iu the £, an additional Is be paid by way of subsidy, up to the total rate allowed to be raised." A deputation of delegates to the Conference waited upon the Premier with reference to tho matters they have had under consideration. Mr Jull, president, said tliey considered tho Local Government l'ill contained many valuable provisions, but it also contained some that were not' calculated to improve local gov-

liniment. One such feature was the • qualification of electors. Only ratepayl ers should have a voice in the election • of such hoilies as County Council, which wore, purely administrative. There was Home doubt about the question of subsidies. The Conference believed that subsidies should be graduated according to thp amount of rates levied in the different counties. The cost of maintaining I roads was increasing, and there should

he provision in the Loans to Local Bodies ! Act for advances of more than JCGOOO, sav, .€IO,OOO. The provisions for creating new counties offered too many facilities for multiplication. Sir Joseph "Ward, in reply, said he recognised ihc importance of these questions. and would like to have the views oT the Conference set out for consideration when the Government was dealing witli the Counties' Act and Local Clovcrnmcnt T>ill. The question of subsidies required to be viewed from the standpoint of settled and unsettled country, and provisions must be flexible. Where people iu newly-settled districts were without conveniences, they should have more consideration than those who had

already had help. There were districts in respect to which it would be unreaonable and impolitic for a graduated scale system to be recurrent every year. They must guard against giving subsidies that were not required. The whole matter would be very carefully considered. l'f there was to be an increase in loan« to local bodies, jthore would be a restriction of monev Wit for the purpose of assisting in other dilutions. Tt would nUo mean large additional borrowing hv the colonv. Tf the M<trl fW ( was Vown out in on* (livtWi-m and i V-n ; 1 «t.UI m another, it wn« jiH possible tint ! - jit ■vv'-'ijld l>urst. Tlw* of J | [the Conference would have full weio-M j (

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