based under the local Act. Other Orders contained powers for the acquisition of lands and the borrowing of money and other miscellaneous powers required for waterworks purposes.

The Shrewsbury Order empowered the Corporation to maintain and improve market places, market buildings and slaughterhouses, and gave borrowing powers for the purpose. The Hereford Order prescribed a new schedule of market tolls, with power to the Minister to vary the new schedule from time to time.

The Bootle Order empowered the Corporation to require the provision of modern ashbins and the removal of ashpits. Under it the Corporation may pay the whole cost of the substitution of ashbins, and must pay at least half the cost, with the proviso that if the existing receptacle is certified as a nuisance or injurious to health or unfit for use the whole of the cost is to be paid by the owner or occupier. The Corporatin may do the work in his default. Ashbins are to be kept in good order and renewed by the owners or occupiers; alternatively the Corporation may themselves maintain and renew the ashbins and charge up to 5s. a year for the service.

The Lancaster Order empowered the Corporation to lay out and develop surplus lands acquired for the purpose of street improvements and to erect and maintain shops, offices, warehouses, etc., upon them. During recent Sessions there have been many precedents in Local Acts for the grant of similar powers, but this is the first occasion on which the power has been given by a Provisional Order.

Eight of the Orders issued during the year contained provisions repealing sections in previous Local Acts to make way for new byelaws on streets and buildings, and one of them also repealed other sections in a Local Act which had been rendered superfluous by subsequent general legislation. As indicated in last year's Report, few areas now remain in which provisions of Local Acts are in force which are likely to interfere with the making of byelaws of a modern type, and only one Order of this kind is being submitted to Parliament for confirmation during the Session of 1928.

Byelaws.

NEW STREETS AND BUILDINGS.

It was mentioned in last year's Annual Report that the work of bringing up to date byelaws made before the Local Government Board's circular letter of 1912 had been nearly completed, and that it was hoped to take up with the Local Authorities concerned the revision of series made between that circular and the circular issued from the Ministry in 1922. This has been done, all such series of byelaws having been examined and letters calling attention to any desirable amendments having been sent to the Local Authorities

concerned before the end of 1927. Steps to bring the byelaws in question into line with the most modern practice in building development are being taken by many Local Authorities, and correspondence is proceeding with those who have not yet resolved to bring their byelaws up to date.

Licensing Powers of Local Authorities.

Towards the end of the period under review attention was drawn to a statement (alleged in the press to have been made publicly by a local magistrate) that members and officials of a certain Local Authority had been receiving free passes to travel on omnibuses licensed by them to ply for hire in their district. After consultation with the Minister of Transport (in view of the latter's appellate jurisdiction under section 14 of the Roads Act, 1920, where a licence is refused) the Minister communicated with the Local Authority, and was assured that they had no knowledge of the receipt by their members or officials of free passes for travel on omnibuses. In reply, the Minister informed the Local Authority that he had felt bound to take the matter up, since it is essential to the satisfactory exercise of the quasi-judicial powers of Local Authorities, in the granting of licences and similar matters, that nothing shall be done to give any ground even for suspicion that they are influenced by other than judicial motives.

Loans for Public Works.

LOANS SANCTIONED TO LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN ENGLAND AND WALES, EXCLUSIVE OF POOR LAW AND HOUSING WORKS AND

LOANS FOR PROVIDING TEMPORARILY FOR CURRENT EXPENSES.

Of the total of £27,339,731, the sum of £1,208,171 was for works certified by the Department under section 6 (1) of the Local Authorities (Financial Provisions) Act, 1921, to have been undertaken for the provision of employment for unemployed persons.

The following statement indicates the sums sanctioned during the years 1926/7 and 1927/8 for various purposes.

These loans were distributed among the different classes of Local Authorities as follows:

In

During the year the Minister issued six Orders to Town Councils consenting to the issue of stock under the Stock Regulations. 1891 to 1921. The amount authorised by these Orders to be raised by the issue of stock was £4,492,324 (exclusive of expenses of issue), a decrease of nearly £13,000,000 on the preceding year. every case but one, the rate of dividend was 5 per cent. per annum, and the price of issue slightly above par. In the remaining case, a successful issue of 4 per cent. stock was made at £97 10s. Od. per £100 nominal stock.

These particulars relate, it should be understood, only to stock issued by Local Authorities under the Stock Regulations and do not include stocks issued independently of those Regulations, under powers contained in Local Acts.

Local Authorities who have issued stock under the Regulations are empowered, with the Minister's consent, to exercise any borrowing power by the use of moneys in the stock redemption fund. During the year twenty-two Orders were issued enabling Local Authorities to use redemption fund moneys to the extent of £2,300,746 in this way.

The total of £27,338.720 given in the report for the year 1926-7 included a sum of £60,046 in respect of Housing of County Council employees. This item is now included in the figures on p. 73 of loans sanctioned for housing purposes.

Under the County Stock Regulations, 1891 to 1921, applicable to County Councils, the Minister during the year issued five Orders relating to the use of moneys in redemption funds in exercise of borrowing powers to the extent of £371,297. There were no fresh issues of County Stock.

It may be noted that several Local Authorities have obtained independent power under recent Local Acts to use, in the exercise of borrowing powers, any funds accumulated for the redemption of debt, and the figures above quoted only partially indicate the extent to which redemption fund moneys have been used for this purpose.

Schemes to Relieve Unemployment.

The Unemployment Grants Committee, under the chairmanship of Lord St. Davids, continued to make grants (under the revised conditions laid down in the circular issued by the Committee on December 15, 1925) in aid of accelerated works of public utility carried out by Local Authorities to relieve exceptional unemploy

ment.

The Committee approved for grant, during the year ended March 31, 1928, schemes which were estimated to cost £1,614,409. Particulars of these schemes are given in Appendix XIII (page 269 below.)

Borrowing for Current Expenses: Finances of Authorities in Coal Districts.

Section 12 (2) (b) of the Rating and Valuation Act, 1925, which came into operation on April 1, 1927, enables Local Authorities to borrow without the Minister's sanction moneys to be used as a working balance pending the receipt of rate and other income. Where, however, a Local Authority finds it necessary to borrow because it finds itself with a revenue deficiency, it can still do so only with the Minister's sanction, given under the provisions of Section 3 of the Local Authorities (Financial Provisions) Act, 1921. During the year 109 Authorities have received sanctions to borrow under these provisions.

In considering applications for sanctions, the Minister carefully investigates the financial position of the Authorities, with special reference to economy in expenditure and the efficient collection of rates and other revenues, and makes suggestions and, where necessary, attaches conditions to the sanction calculated to reduce expenditure and to strengthen the financial position of the Authority. In the year under review it has been a general rule to