Colonel Waitmore on Local Government Reform.

Thames Star, Volume XII, Issue 3764, 20 January 1881, Page 2

Colonel Waitmore on Local Government Reform.

The following letter appears in the Wairarapa Standard under the signature of Colonel Whitmore :—

When Abolition swept away the Provincial form of local government, the Legislature should undoubtedly have taken care to substitute some system -which would efficiently provide for local requirements. It cannot be said that the institutions called into existence by the Legislature of 1876 have satisfied the local wants of tha Colony, while it is quite clear that they are cumbrous, expensive,and work discordantly among themselves.. The Jt'rovineial system on the other hand did good work, and in some parts of the Colony left little to be desired ; but such success as did attend it was largely due to the support it received from the Land and Consolidated Funds, revenue not raissd by the body which expended it.' As the Public Works policy developed itself, the Land Fund was gradually absorbed by the G-eneral Q-overn-ment, while the Consolidated Fund became less and less able to subsidise the Provinces, until at length the original three eights of the Customs, and latterly the capitation subsidy, disappeared altogether. Tn, the larger Provinces, especially, direct taxation evßn for special purposes was felt,, and in some found to be- impossible, although rates leied within the smaller ar0.13 of the Road Boards, and Municipalities, proved easy of collection. Mmy thought that with these smaller corporations which, apparently worked well, it would have been wiser to have been contented extending thsir duties, powers, and responsibilities, when the Provinces were abolished, and that it was taking a leap in the dark to create the County system. Experience has now shown that very few counties have realised the expectations of their creators, while in by far the larger number of instances, they have proved a positive failure. The general principle of government which most political writers consider the true one in theory, is that of centralist legislation, b.tt localised administration. The duties of administration confided to the Counties are however so limited, and so much, that they could easily undertake, devolves upon other locil boards, tb-st they become dwarfed into very insignificant, and useless bodies. Moreover the duties which they are supposed to dischiU'go are a most identical with those of their component Road Boards, and the somewhat absurd spectacle is presentei of two taxing bodies levying ratea, maintaining ee^arate staffs, and executing works of exactly the same character, side by side, all over tho co'ony. The Road Boards are ioaiitu ions which, a<3 a rule, have for many years proved themselves to be an un* mixed success. They axe easily aud cheaply worked, they attract practical men to taka part; in their labours, they are popular everywhere, and never having been subordinated to the County Councils, are now found often to. conflict wii h what should be the superior body, if any rnison de'etre exists for these lattsr at all.

The mo3t successful Counties have been those in which Road Boards do not exist, ana which are therefore only giant Eoad Boards themselves. Consequently they are not, strictly spoaking, fair instances of the success of the County system. Before suggesting the direction which reform of our local government should take, it is neceas try to consider and define what part of the Government of the Colony should be locally administered, and paid for from local funds. In this category at home ia included the control of tha Police Force, but in England public opinion has already condemned this arrangement; and slow as reforms are at home, ib is almost certain that soon the Police of the whole country will be brought under a central administration. Here we have already our Magistrates appointed for the whoie Colony, and the County organisation of the Police hangs upon the County appointment of the Magistracy. Consequently there .are local jealousies to be overcome in England, which hiive hitherto impeded tha adoption of a system better calculated to preserve the public peace. It; is obviously undesirable that the police should be too loc:»l in its character, for it is hardly possible that it should be so, without risk of the individual officers acquiring local interests and sympathies and even forming local connections, which might under easily conceivable circumstances, operate rery prejudicially to the public interest. In fact few will deny that it is quite possible for a policeman to be in a particular locality ; and that many cases might arise, as indeed one actually did in this colony; where the police might place themselves in opposition to the General Government at a time of local excitamenfc. Waiving then the police, what reasonable objection can there be to the purely local administration of the Harbore, .River Conservation, Education, Hospitals, and Charitable Aid 5 and why should not all these branches be brought under the control of a single local body, call it Council or any other name ? The Provinces succeeded well in managing them/and were the area, now that the country is becoming more populated, restricted, there would be less difficulty in providing the local necessary f unda to support their, than would be experienced if the geographical boundaries of the old Provinces were Btrictly maintained. Road making and the maintenance of the traffic through districts can be best carried out by Road Boards. At least that is the experience of the colony, and if this is admitted why should another local body be permitted to select certain highways upon whioh to carry out rival road works in each district ? Even if we admit thai certain lines of road* affect other districts than those through which they :pass, or affect each differently, cannot this distinction be recognised and provided for in some better way than by providing two road making stafla ia the same focslity P The proper function of the centr&l

local authority (call it County if it be desirable) would be quite as well riiasharged if its powers only extended to the distribution of County Funds among the Road Boards in such proportions as might seem just and requisite for the maintenance of the part of the County roads passing through each.

Accepting then these as the normal duties which should respectively fall to the superior and lesser local bodies, would it not be hotter to abolish all the minor Boards, which at present subdivide among themselves >.ork, by no means excessive, for a single consolidated organisation, which having higher and wider duties would attract men more able than at present often compose them, and would they not pay more attention to.their duties if their responsibility increased? It would be to argue against human nature to assert this, and we may accept it a3 a fact, that •onstituenfc bodies, B like individuals, rarely fail to rise to higher responsibility. The present subdivi* sion of the Colony into Counties requires revision ; for as a, rule they are too small. Probably twenty counties in all would be sufficient, at present, and it is a question whether there i-j any wisdom shewn in fixing a "hard and fast" number of Ridings. At all events each Riding should be coincident iv its boundaries witli a Road Board. In the arrangemeufc of Sidings the large Road Board system of Wellington and Cauterbury would at first be a difficulty; but as the wards might ba converted into Ridings, or Road Boards, it would nofc prove insuperable, To popularise the composition of the County Council.-?, and ensure harmonious action between' thorn and the Road Boards, it would be desirable to leave to the Boards the tho election of a Councillor from each to represent it, and as there is no real reason why the Municipalities should bo excised from th 9 Counties, they aUoßh.ou.ld have a representation fairly proportionate to tlieir importance-, and elected by the Municipal Councils. The Chairman of the several Road Boards mig t ex qocio be the delegates, if election was deemed inadvisable.

Whether Road Boards and Counties can be thus welded iuto a joint concern or not there can be no doubt that the superior local body should have a certain control over the lesser ones, and be able to exercise over them, in matters of general concern, a certain authority for the protection of the public interest. It would be convenient that they should be in fact a Court of Apperl to oppressed- minorities of the ratepayers, and enabled by law to compel Road Boards which neglect their duties to fulfil them. There is at present no appeal against an excessive or insufficient general rate, and Boards which fail to provide for the maintenance of the public traffic cannot be compelled to do so. This last lack could be easily ensured by a power enabling the Council, in extreme cases, to suspend until the next election any defaulting Bjad Boar el, assuming its powers, imposing and collecting its rates, aud executing the necessary works. The next election of a Board would enable the locality to provide a better set of men to carry out the Board duties. And as regards the minorities, now quite unprotected, no set of men could be more competent to hear their appeal than a Council composed of Ro .d Buard members from all parts of the dhtrict. It would be essential under such a system of locrl government that the Chairman be Chief of the Executive, and entrusted with actual authority. At present nobody has any special authority—each detail is supposed to be .voted by the whole Council, which usually meets but once a month. As a faot the Chairman assume* the authority, when requisite, but he has none by law, as yet, and trusts entirely to being indemnified for any action he may take.

It is usually said by Abolitionists that the Provincial Governments excereiaed too great a power in Parliament and used ib tj obtain grants improperly from the Loan Monies and Consolidated Fund for objects of purely local concern. We have no more money now to be scrambled for, and fciie time has come to lay down what services must be paid for locally, and those by the General Government. If that wr.J done, even Provinces could not use undue pressure;' nor will extravagance be possible in localities which, are directly rated for local sprvicei. The only possible mode of ensuring economy is ti bring the spending body face to. ft to with the taxpayer. The vice of the Provincial system was that under it the revenue expended was not raised by the Provincial Governments. Under a system of which, the present cost of administration can be divided, and ttio local ratepayer enabled to see and control the expenditure of that part; which may be deemed local liability, very little money will -ba wasted in local government.

Reform is necessary, and urgently necessary at the earliest possible moment. We can no longer afford wast 3 ; we want to attract and to secure the services of all our best men to assist in carrying out local government. We are over-boarded at present, and none of our Boards have enough t > do, with the natural consequence that they do nothing. Every penny wasted by a locality as by an individual is a public loss, and we cannot afford to lose at present. It ia to be hoped that next session this subject may receive the early attention of Parliament; that some simple, practical, and complete system of local government maybe initiated, and that the legislation tj this end may be comprised' in one single and easily understood statute, which will govern all the relations of all local governing bodies ia the Colony.

Or. S. Whixmom. Hawke's Bay, Jan. 4th, 1881.