AM AUDITOR'S "TAG."

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 107, 13 August 1910, Page 6

AM AUDITOR'S "TAG."

A PRINCIPLE INVOLVED. Tags or exceptions attached to bal-ance-sheets of public bodies are as common as colds, and treated, as a rule, with the same want of respect. But there's a storm brewing now over a new exception appearing on this year's balance-sheets.

The Auditor-General has attached a tag to the balance-sheet of the Taranaki School Commissioners, disallowing of the payment of travelling expenses of members of the Board and of its secretary, who had undertaken journeys, acting upon the Board's instructions, to transact the Board's business. The "tag" sets out that there is no authority in "law" for the payment of the Commissioners' travelling expenses of £26, and the secretary's expenses incurred in a recent visit to Wellington. t At yesterday's meeting the secretary, Mr. Corkill, said he understood that the Auditor-General was attaching this objection to all the local bodies' balancesheets. He understood that in the case of the New Pymouth Harbor Board the objection was made applicable to the ex- . penses incurred by Messrs. King and Connett in their recent mission to London in connection with the Board's loan, as well as to the ordinary travelling expenses of members in attending meetings.

The chairman said the Taranaki Education Board's ibalanee-sheet had been similarly "tagged." It.was scarcely reasonable to expect men to travel from their homes on public business, either to attend meetings or, 'as in the case of the Education Board, to conduct enquiries at., outlying centres such as Whangamomona, without having expenses paid by the public body upon whose instructions they were working. The secretary stated that, he had written to the Auckland Commissioners to find out how they fared, and had received a letter from the secretary stating that their balance-sheet had been returned with similar exceptions, which they proposed to ignore. Mr. Major moved, and the chairman seconded, that Mr. H. Okey and his fellow members representing the district of Taranaki in Parliament, be asked to bring under, the notice of the Premier the intimation received from the Auli-tor-General iby local bodies relative to the non-payment of membe-s' irave'ling expenses, and request the Premier to move in the matter of pasting, legislation to authorise the payment of t.'.e same by kiwi

'• Mr. Simpson objected to the resolution, on the ground that this Board r ad nothing to do with other local bodies' troubles, tout should confine itself to iU own case. i The motion was seconded by the obairman and carried, Mr. Simpson dissenting. Mr. Major suggested that the Board might go farther, by requesting the support of other local bodies similarly at" i fected. "Only," he added, laughing, i "they'd say here's the initiative from the dead: a resolution from the morgue."