‘Useless’ Officials And

Hcl

Plea For New Caledonia

Prom Our Own Correspondent

Noumea, Oct. 1.

rTHHE New Caledonian administration X and its French officials came in for scathing criticism from the Presi dent of the General Council, Monsieur H. Bonneaud, at an extraordinary session in Noumea called to consider ways and means of implementing plans for the Colony’s development.

Monsieur Bonneaud’s address came with all the more force as he only re cently returned from a visit to France, where he was received by the President of the Republic and the Minister for Overseas France. He praised the work of the Colony’s representatives in Paris, Messrs. Gervoline, Lafleur, Bicjon and Mage, who (he said) had done their best to get a better deal for the Colony.

Monsieur Bonneaud in particular charged that the administration was top-heavy and rotten with red tape. He urged that expenditure should be re viewed and that officials found unpro ductive be sent back to France. All the Colony needed in the way of outside officials, he said, was French technicians to equip and organise agriculture and train local staffs with a view to develop ing small industries and increasing pro ductiveness of tl)e principal industry— mining—on which the balance of trade depended. He described his speech as a cry of alarm against an incapable and unwieldy administrative machine. France, he said, must stop sending out useless officials.

He also urged that attention should be paid to economic geography in order to reduce the cost of living, which was excessive in comparison with tha/t in neighbouring lands. The position was that they were four days from Australia and New Zealand, and three weeks from the United States, and yet were obliged to make large purchases in France or Indo-China at excessive prices because France would not make foreign exchange available.

They were quite ready—indeed, anxious—to buy all that France could send them at competitive prices; but when they were forced to pay from 50 to 100 per cent, more for goods that were readily obtainable nearer at hand, the result in living costs was disastrous. This state of things applied, for example, to rice (which they were compelled to get from Indo-China) to cement, and many other necessities.

He therefore advocated a freer economy combined with an effective system of price control, and also suggested that all local municipalities should send in their views on the general economic and political situation.

For the past 21 years, he said, the Council had passed measures intended to transform the island and give ifs in habitants productive and profitable work. Instead, dilatoriness and evasive ness on the executive side had put the island to sleep.

A price order issued in Fiji recently increased the maximum selling price of New Zealand butter at Suva from 2/9i per lb. to 3/2 per lb., and made the usual provision for an additional Id for sales in other areas. This rise of 41 d a pound is due to an increase in the New Zealand FOB price for butter.