BEER SHORTAGE

Grey River Argus, 30 January 1946, Page 3

BEER SHORTAGE

In AustraHa SYDNEY, Jan. 29. Senator Keane, Minister of Customs, states there has been a misconception by the newspapers of his statement regarding the beer shortage. The fact was that the brewers have been authorised to bring forward one week’s supply from F ebruary to January and carry this back to March. Consequently, February and March would see no increase. He did not know what would happen after that. The papers had sai_d he had announced an increase of 25 per cent, in the beer quota. BOYCOTT OF HOTELS COMMUNIST'S BLAMED SYDNEY. Jan. 29. Licensees are blaming Communists for boycotts and threatened blackballing of hotels in the last few weeks. While they admit that there are anomalies caused by liquor rationing, hotelkeepers say that they hav ea big enough task in supplying as many customers as possible without being harassed by a sudden wave of boycotts that scorns to have arisen. “It looks to me that the same group of individuals is responsible for each new outbreak,” said one licensee. “Judging from complaints against publicans that have cropped up with remarkable regularity at groups of hotels in the same locality, we are sure that some well-or-ganised plan is afoot to cause discontent. The Communists do not care whether it is beer or coal, as long as they can cause trouble.” A threatened boycott of Galdesville and Bayview Hotels failed to materialise yesterday. Another hotel had its boycott lifted for four days as a “probation” period.