COUNTIES CONFERENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 October 1919, Page 3

COUNTIES CONFERENCE.

SESSION AT WELLINGTON; By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Yesterday. Stress was laid to-day at the opening of the Counties' Conference on the importance of settling problems of local government in regard to satisfactory finance for development and settlement, and therefore of increasing the production necessary to pay oil' debts incurred by the -war.

Mr. J. B. Hine, the Minister of Internal Affairrj, emphasised especially the need for solving the problem of the construction and maintenance of main arterial roads.

Mr. G. W. Russell, ex-Minister of Internal Affairs, urged the institution of satisfactory finance in order that the local authorities in question might be able to carry out their proper work of developing the country. Mr. Hine said it was quite evident that present methods of construction, upkeep, and control of roads were out of date. Personally, he was inclined to institute a Board of Works to define what were main roads requiring aid from the State.

Mr. Kussell said that the first thing that must be provided was an assured finance. It was scandalous that countries should be treated as they had been in the past, and it was only by a sound system of financo in the shape of subsidies that a settlement might be forwarded and production increased. The subsidy should rise even to such an extent as at West Taupo, for instance, when it might be £lO for every £1 rates Taised. He was opposed to the subdivision of counties into what, in his opinion, were nothing more than glorified road boards., He believed in strong counties, strong enough to maintain a first-class staff with a first-class engineer. It was decided that the Government be requested to use its best endeavors to have all loan moneys and grants placed to the credit of local bodies interested as soon as authorised, in order that works might be carried out during the dry weather.

The following remits were adopted: That, in cases where a local body has funds to the credit of the loan account and no expenditure to meet for the time being, statutory provision be made enabling a local body to make a temporary transfer of moneys to the fund account if such be in debit, in order to save interest on the overdraft; that section 135, sub-section 2 of the Counties Act, 190S, be amended so that the preparation of the half-yearly balance sheet at September 30 and March 31 in «ach year will not be necessary; that a eoiuity council, either by itself or jointly with any other local body, be empowered to establish and maintain gravel pits and quarries either within or without :he county; that the Act be amended so that depreciation on a valuable road-making plant may be provided for in county fund accounts, either as a charge to the ridings using the plant or the provision hi a reserve or sinking fund to provide funds for replacement, at a later date: that county councils be empowered to receive moneys mi deposit in the same manner as is provided in the Municipal Corporations Act: that increased powers be piven to couniy councils to borrow for the erection of dwelling.-; for county employees, including p,rv-v io pledge, a special rate without t«k ; ng a poll ot ratepayers, and that the Local Bodies Loans Act be amended accordingly.