SOCIAL SECURITY ACT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 8 March 1939, Page 4

SOCIAL SECURITY ACT

EFFECT UPON LOCAL BODIES.

MUNICIPAL ASSOCIATION’S SUBMISSIONS.

(By Telegraph.) (Special to “Times-Age.”) DUNEDIN. This Day.

“On May 3, 1938, while the Social Security Bill was in the committee stage, I submitted 11 evidence upon its effect upon local bodies,” stated Mr T. Jordan, president of the Municipal Association, in his annual report presented at the conference of the Association today. “The secretary had previously gone to considerable trouble to collect evidence from our members, and a memorandum was prepared. Our submissions (inter alia) were: —(1) That national health insurance should be compulsory and financed out of direct contributions by employer, employee and the State. This submission was in terms of the finding of the joint conference of the hospital boards, counties and municipal associations held in Wellington on February 6, 1936. (2) That some relief be given to ratepayers from the increasing burden of hospital and charitable rating. We stressed the submission that the present system based on mere ownership of property, irrespective of its earning power, was entirely unfair, that the principle proposed to be adopted in the Bill of basing the health charge upon the incomes and salaries should be extended to cover the whole of the hospital expenditure. It is significant that the Minister of Finance agreed that this was the fairer method, but in reply to me he stated that it could not all be done at once. (3) That where local body officers are contributors to a superannuation scheme they should be exempted from a proportion of the charge on wages. This submission was similar to that made by the Electric Power Boards’ Association, with which organisation, we collaborated.”