FIRE BOARDS AND GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATION.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8860, 21 October 1907, Page 4

FIRE BOARDS AND GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATION.

It is satisfactory to know that, synchronising with the retirement of the Wellington Harbour Board's secretary on account of the attitude of Government nominees on that body, a protest has been successfully made by representatives of the leading municipalities of the Dominion to check the practice in regard to another important organisation. The Fire Brigades' Bill, now before Parliament, provided, amongst other tilings, that the Government should be represented on the Fire Brigades' Board, and the deputation that waited upon the Attorney-General, on Friday last, in reference to the general provisions of the Bill, entered a strong protest against the Government having "a finger in the pie" through its special nominees. Dr. of course, repudiated the idea that the Government had thrust its representatives into the boards in order to get control, but only, as he declared, to provide some fair and impartial chairman preserving the balance between conflicting interests. r Jhat may be so, but the Government's contribution is remarkably small, its nominees are rarely impartial, and the deputation felt that it would be as well to limit Ministerial control in administrative matters. The Attorney-General accepted the position, and agreed to withdraw the Government Representative on the boards. These bodies will, therefore, be in the tortunate position of being able to conduct their own affairs without the bane of Ministerial nominee interference.