The Daily News SATURDAY, MAY 23. A NEW COUNTY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 130, 23 May 1908, Page 2

The Daily News SATURDAY, MAY 23. A NEW COUNTY.

Dibit's of r;iU'|My» llir L''raul<l«'y, :iinl Klli'itroad districts to scli'.'nirs obliiMiinir relief from their un■Nilisl'aftovv rntMi;* \v;\s n laivly it pre-clltat ivo one, ami >o far as the voting wvnL. showed a decided eiK-o lor .solving Uic iirolilcm by forming a new cuuntv ratlier tlliin by ijiir into the borough of Xeu - Plynionih. with all due respect: f»r tho opmions of tin* thirty odd ratqwyor* whose votes (b'v-id' d the we, are of opinion that lln-y lwvo niad« a mistake, one* that, however, in our opinion, will not materialise.

Brielly, the ratepayers of Ihu road districts interesting themselves in the! matter have been paying a Ihi'c'MafIhing rale to the Taranaki County Council, producing, with the Government subsidy, £IO4O, of which the county has this year refimded by way of subsidy the latter amount represent-, in»: only portion of the wholo spent' within the road district by t-lio eounty. ]Jeli<*f from this annual drain of CTSD per annum is what the. road boards' ratepayers are striving to obtain. Each of the road boards levies a further three-farthing rate for its own district purposes, so that the districts are actually rated in the pound on the capital value, irrespective of special and hospital rates. The question the ratepayers had to decide was which of the two schemes before them would all'ord the greater measure of relief. As was pointed out by the chairman, the. borough rate, 3s Id in tbe pound on the annual value (which includes the hospital rate) is practically equal to a, three-fartliing rate based on the capital value. J\v merging into the borough, therefore, the road board ratepayers, as* suming the borough rale remains nt the present figure—and it is more likely lo be. decreased than increased—they would save the whole* of the rate innv collected "from them by the Taranaki Council. They would secure the benelit of the capital expenditure on UieeU«ftric light and water and drainage works (over CKKViOO), the interest un uiiiiM would perforce have to be found by the present New* Plymouth borough district.

While, of course, thev would continue lo pay their own special rates on loans raised in the road board districts, it might be pointed out that they cauuot get rid of these even if they form themselves into tlie proposed new county. H may be assumed that extensions of borough facilities to their districts, snc.ii ns lighting and water, were they merged into the borough, would be carrien out by way of loan, but the whole of the borough would contribute to meeting the interest charges. If, however, under the county scheme, these modem facilities he sought, the district galling them would have to carry the total cost on its shoulders. It seems to us that the suburban districts have more to gain by merging into the borough than the borough ratepayers have to lose by the change eventuating. On the broad question of benelit of the whole district, however, there is no question all must eventually gain by amalgamation. So far the county scheme is concerned, we believe it might represent a saving over the present untenable portion. At present these districts, paying I'/I'd in rates, have the spending of Cl'lSli. represented by the mad board rates ;ind Oovernment sub-idv, and the ivl Milled hy tile IJoid lio.tnl. <nie -pt-a l,ey contended that the prnpn-i'd county could work on a penny rati*, but we think it very problematical. A penny rate, with Oovernnient subsidy. would only produce x'ttiKi. or more than the three Hoards expend at present and lind altogether insnllieient for their rquirenieiits. Kven if a penny rate, with its ai'coinpanying (Government subsidy, were suliieieut, it might be pointed out that it would be equal to a rate on tlie annual value of Is Id in the pound, or lid more than the j-ate in the borough.

It iniir-l be admitted, of curse, that a mea-siire of injustice would be done lo the road board ratepayers at the upper end of Ihe roads, were the borough proposal accepted, bill only in so far as tlie.v would not reap the henelits that would accrue to the merged districts. Tliey would not lie any worse oil' than they a re at present. And even if ( lie county is formed we cannot see tiwf they might be ally better off, for there will be nothing to prevent the thickly populated and highly-valued portions of the then county merging into the borough as recently proposed. We are inclined to think, however, that the county scheme has hut an outside chance of materialising, no matter how desirable it might he. The whole trend of modern legislation is against multiplicity of local bodies, and particularly of such a one as now proposed. Jlere we would have a county, not only within a county, but absolutely and completely intersecting an existing county. While the proposal, were it unanimously supported by the mad boards concerned and the parent body (the Taranaki County Council), might have had a reasonable chalice of success, it seems to us that the opposition that will naturaHy »e raised by the County Council must be fatal. Ml'. Okey, the member for the district, will liuit himself in an awkward and unenviable position with regard to the Bill, ujiou which liis country constituents will be divided directly'for and against him. Notwithstanding (hat in our view the ratepayers haie not acted ill their best nil'-iv-is. w ireognise the absolute justice of their claim for j-elief from existing conditions, which we believe tin' proposed new county would to some extent alVord. While, also, we believe the fullest relief possible can only be obtained front the, borough proposal, no obstacle, so lar as the borough or road hoards is concerned, should now he placed in tile way of the new county Bill. which should be afforded every chance of becoming law. The set-back to tlw Greater New Plymouth advocates, is, at the worst, only a temporary one. which a few months ma v.serve to re adjust.