Local phone call charge?

Press, 31 July 1978, Page 1

Local phone call charge?

Wellington

A charge for local telephone calls was being examined as one way of boosting Post Office revenue, said the Post-master-General (Mr Wilkinson) yesterday. But it was only one of a wide rangf of possibilities, he told the Post Office Association’s annual conference in Wellington.

Asked by the association’s president, Mr R. S. Nesbitt, whether such a charge was being considered, Mr Wilkinson said: “We are examining every known system of charging — including local call charging — which could be applicable in New Zealand. This is as far as I can go at present.” No decision had yet been made and at least one more round of study might be needed before the Government could decide whether the system should be changed, he said. The resulting charges might be quite small. Mr Wilkinson also announced a record profit for the Post Office of 537.7 M for the last March year. The profit would be used for capital development, as was last year’s $21.2M surplus, he said. The speed at which it was spent would depend on the Government’s over-all spending policy. Elaborating later on the review of charges, Mr Wilkinson said it was a longterm exercise which had already been under way for some time. The interdeoartmental committee

making the study might not finish it before the end of the year. He emphasised that though he had been asked about local calls charges, many other possibilities were being examined. Mr Nesbitt told the conference that Post Office

: workers were concerned 1 about a new emphasis on commercial activities : rather than service to the I public. , “We all seem to be ; asked to accept an accountant’s attitude of profit and return on invest- « ments,” he said.