CO885-(18-19) — Page 378

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1

Miscellaneous

No. 216.

MINUTES AS TO REFERENCE OF SUBJECTS TO THE FINANCE AND CONCESSIONS COMMITTEES.

SIR F. HOPWOOD,

I HAVE not yet seen any instructions as to the nature of the papers to be referred to the Finance and Concessions Committees. It is somewhat urgent to get the former Committee at work, as I have the Weihaiwei Estimates waiting for them, and they ought to go to the Treasury in the course of next week.

As I occupy a special position on these Committees, perhaps I may offer some suggestions by way of opening the discussion and getting decisions :-

1. Finance Committee-

a. I understand that it is not intended that Estimates of all Crown Colonies should

go to the Committee, but only the Estimates of those Administrations that receive aid

from Imperial Funds.

b. I suggest that all proposals for the raising of loans should go to the Committee.

e. Also any proposals for varying the Financial Instructions, or requests for rulings with respect to them.

laws.

d. All questions relating to the currency of Crown Colonies, or to their banking

2. Concessions and Railway Committees-

a. Concessions, of course, will go to the Committee; but

line 4. Should questions affecting the management of an opea

to the Committee ? go or only projects for new lines? and should extensions go, if they do not attain to the dignity of a new line?

I foresee great practical difficulty if the ordinary railway schemes of an old- established Colony are dealt with by a Committee, eg, the new railway schemes in Ceylon. These are intimately connected with the general administrative needs, and the finances, of the Colony, and it would be a most laborious work to inform the Committee up to the point where they can usefully consider such matters.

I would suggest, in the first instance at any rate, confining Railway subjects to schemes for railways in the undeveloped Colonies of Africa, or to any schemes that might involve aid from Imperial Funds. The procedure should be that the Head of the Division should send to the Secretary of the Committee a statement shewing what papers, The Secretary including minutes, he considers should be laid before the Committee. should then be responsible for having the necessary copying (or collecting of prints) done and for circulating them to the Members; for preparing the agenda paper; keeping the minutes; and for transcribing on the Minute paper (for initialling by the chairman) the recommendation of the Committee.

for

The Secretary should keep full and careful Minutes of the Committee's proceedings in a book which should be accessible at any time to the Members. The book might be circulated to members for perusal after each meeting; this would save the labour copying Minutes or, alternatively, the time otherwise spent in reading them out at the subsequent meeting.

100 G 878 Wt 24691 13/07 D & 8 5 30685

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It would be well to fix a special day and hour of each week for the meeting of the Committee. Emergency meetings could be held if necessary, or the Secretary would inform members the previous day if there would be no business on a particular date.

December 11th, 1907.

1

G.V.F.

I concur in Mr. Fiddes's suggestions except as regards railways. It seems to me that what he says about the difficulty of dealing with the schemes of an old-established colony like Ceylon applies with not less force to schemes for railways in the African Protectorates. [I should propose, therefore, not to refer projects for new lines or extensions to the Committee, except when it is a question of granting a concession for construction by private persons and the opinion of the Committee is desired as to the terms to be imposed.] But questions affecting the management of an open line (e.g., as to the powers of the General Manager), should, in my opinion, be referred to the Committee, as

they are generally independent of the local circumstances and it is desirable to have the advantage of the combined experience of the Office in dealing with them.

There are also questions relating to construction (e.g., whether a line should be constructed departmentally or by contract, or how the Consulting Engineers should be remunerated) which it would be useful to refer to the Committee.

December 11th.

SIR F. HOPWOOD,

I

R.L.A.

agree with Mr. Fiddes on all points. With regard to Mr. Antrobus's minute at A [printed in brackets]. I should have thought that "the construction of new lines by whatever method was a matter for the Committee.

December 11th.

H.B.C.

It is not worth while, as a rule, to refer extensions of existing Railways in a Colony owning the railways and paying its own way, to the Railway Committee. Such extensions depend rather on finance than anything else and may come before the Finance Committee in the Estimates. But all applications for concessions for railways or extensions of railways made by private individuals or companies should go to the Railway Committee. As I have said elsewhere, I doubt whether small points as to rates or management of existing railways should be referred—in my judgment they should be dealt with in the Department.

December 12th.

F.J.S.H.

At once.