COUNTY GOVERNMENT.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 September 1921, Page 5

COUNTY GOVERNMENT.

CONFERENCE OF COUNCILS. HIGHWAYS BILL OPPOSED. THE HOSPITAL LEVY. By Telegraph—Press Association. ■Wellington, Last Night. The biennial conference o$ the New Zealand Counties Association commenced here to-day. Mr. A. E. Jull (Wai z pawa), president, presided over a large attendance of delegates. Apologies iot non-attendance were received from the Acting-Prime Minister and other Ministers. The statement of accounts showed surplus assets over liabilities of £522.

During the forenoon, the Hon. J. G. Coates'(Minister of Public Works) attended and gave some further information concerning the proposed Highways Bill, although he was unable to give the full text of the measure pending Mr. Massey’s return. Tn the course of his statement the Minister said, it was proposed to take over 2000 miles cf roads, the sum for the maintenance of i which would be largely increased. The main idea of the proposal was to meet I the demand for the accommodation of ! speedier forms of transit m modern I days. ; Subsequently the conference discussed • the proposals in detail, and with the {exception of the Hawke’s Bay, MarlI borough and Wanganui - delegates, was unanimous in adopting a recommenda--1 tion prepared by the executive disap- , proving entirely of the proposals in the I suggested measure, the opinion being ithat its adoption would mean the end {of county government, which was not in the best interests of the Dominion. The president, in the course of an interesting review, commented on the evils of the subsidy system of local government, advocating increasing the size of counties where practicable, and deploring the tendency to parochialism. '±lie conference unanimously passed a remit urging the exemption of County Councils from the operation of Arbitration Court awards. The conference rejected a remit advocating the abolition of ridings, except for representation purposes. Several machinery amendments to the Counties Act were carried; arso a remit urging that rates on land purchased by the Crown for soldier settlement be effectually secured to a local body. Other remits carried recommended the subsidy for base hospitals as 24s in the pound,'all others £ for £; also deploring the present system of making a levy for hospital and. charitable aid purposes over a hospital district on the rateable value, as unfair and detrimental to the interests of counties,, as against boroughs, owing to the differentiation in the number of patients.