PARCELS BY POST

Dominion, Volume 20, Issue 256, 28 July 1927, Page 9

PARCELS BY POST

SHOULD THEY PAY WHARFAGE DUES QUESTION OF PRINCIPLE ■ The question of whether goods imported by post from abroad should be made to pay wharfage dues was. debated by the. Harbour Board last night. The matter was introduced by the following recommendation front the executive of the Harbours’ Association: “Taking advantage of the representations that have recently been made to the Prime Minister in reference to the ‘cash on delivery’ system of handling parcel post .matter, the association approached the Prime Minister again, drawing attention to the position that parcel post matter paid no harbour dues. The Prime Minister has now replied to the effect that he did not consider it right to load parcel post matter with harbour dues. The executive decided that, in view of the nature of this reply, the president (Mr. J. G. Cobbe) and. Captain McArthur be authorised to wait on the Prime Minister and again urge the unfairness of the present position.” Mr. G.' Mitchell said it seemed very unfair to the trades people of this country, who paid wharfage dues for the goods they received, to have goods passed over 'the wharf by parcels Post and the Post Office to act as collector for cash on delivery payments. Mr. C. Al. Turrell said it was open to a-nv tradesman to send goods out by parcels post. The only thing which concerned the board was whether these postal parcels should pay wharfage or not.

* Mr. D. J. McGowan said the Chamber of Commerce had been hamraeriug at the problem for four years and had got nowhere. The difficulty was that many, local tradespeople obtained goods by parcel post themselves. Mr. Mitchell said if was not a. question of wharfage; it was a question of principle. Should the Post Office act as collectors for overseas traders? Mr. J. G. Harkness said that many of these parcels came out practically consigned to the Government, who held them against payment. Captain . Macindoe considered that everything in the ; way of mail should be allowed in free, but everything else should pay wharfage. The chairman (Mr. J. G. Cobbe) said that, in any case, Captain McArthur and he would shortly wait upon the Prime Minister, and urge the unfairness of parcels by post being allowed to come over the wharf free.