P. AND T. REVENUE

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 253, 9 July 1926, Page 4

P. AND T. REVENUE

THE YEAR’S OPERATIONS RECEIPTS EXCEED EXPENDITURE Reference <o a net excess of receipts over pavments of £670,913 in the Post and Telegraph Department s operations during the financial year, was made bv the Minister of I’inancc (Hon. W. Downie Stewart) in presenting his Budget to the House of Representatives last night. Mr. Stewart said that the revenue of the I’ost and Telegraph Department paid over to the Consolidated Fund amounted to £3,077,735. Of that amount, the postal branch accounted for £1,41-1,081; telegrams, £371,250; toll messages, £312,120; and telephone exchange receipts, £980,283. The telephone exchange receipts showed an increase over those for the previous year of about £113,000. The net expenditure out of the vote Post and Telegraph working expenses amounted to £2,406,791. There was thus a net excess of receipts over payments of .£670,9-13, which was available to cover the interest on the loan capital of the Department. The presentation of the bal-ance-sheet would, however, show the actual results on a commercial basis. The Post Office Savings Bank figures showed an improvement over those for the previous year. There was in 19’2-1-25 an excess of withdrawals over deposits of £830,712, whereas in 1925-26 the deposits amounted to £31,833,621, and the withdrawals to £32,602,506, an excess of withdrawals over deposits of £768,885. The position was still improving, as since the end of the yeai the amount of deposits had exceeded the amount of withdrawals. On March 31 there were 758,188 depositors, and the total amount at their credit, exclusive of interest for the vear, was £-16,179,7-11. Money-orders and postal notes issued totalled in value £5,907,171, and those paid £5,528,811. The first issue of Post Office investment certificates, in November, 1920, matured in November, 1925, and the redemptions to the end of March totalled £175,254. "I would have expected to. find a greater use bv the public of this excellent form of ' small investment,” concluded the Minister.