TASMANIAN POTATOES

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22046, 28 February 1935, Page 7

TASMANIAN POTATOES

BANNED IN VICTORIA , ■ ■ i CRITICISM BY PREMIER THREATS OF REPRISALS Mr. Ogilvie, Premier of Tasmania, lately strongly criticised the Victorian Government's refusal to allow* Tasmanian potatoes, consigned to Sydney, to be transported by the Victorian railways. He suggested that Tasmanians should retaliate by refusing to buy Victorian goods. He said the terras of the Australian Constitution concerning free intercourse of trade between States were becoming a sham. In reply to Mr.' Ogilvie's request that the Victorian Government should reconsider its decision, the Premier of Victoria, Sir Stanley Argyle, sent the following message:—"The action taken by the Victorian authorities is that required by proclamation on October 31, 1932, under the Vegetation and Vine Diseases Act, which absolutely prohibits the introduction, importation or bringing into Victoria of potatoes from Tasmania. This proclamation is the subject of a High Court action instituted by your State and, pending decision of the Court, this Government is unable to relax the terms of the proclamation. I suggest you advise Tasmanian exporters accordingly." Mr. Ogilvie said that, since this message was received, further trouble occurred. About 20 tons of potatoes were sent to Victoria to be stored in a ship for export overseas, but the ...port authorities there refused even to handle them, even on the wharf. Intolerable burdens were being inflicted deliberately upon a body of primary producers who were as much entitled to consideration as the wheatgrowers and citrus fruitgrowers of the mainland. "The exclusion of our added Mr. Ogilvie, "is asserted by Victoria to be necessary because of the occurrence of disease, but no one who knowjs the lucrative market which we command in Sydney and elsewhere can seriously believe that Victoria has introduced its embargo solely for this reason."

BRITISH TREASURY LATEST WEEKLY RETURNS INCOME TAX FIGURES ' ' (Received February 27, 5.5 p.m.) British Wireless RUGBY, Feb. 96 The latest Treasury returns show that the ordinary revenue for the financial year to February 23 amounted to £620,169,263, , compared with £631,766,084 for the corresponding period last year. Including self-balanc-ing revenue, the figures are £698,409,263 and £708,596,(®4 respectively. Income tax collected last week amounted to £12,821,000, bringing the total to date £188,490,000, as against £186,673,000 at the corresponding date last year. Total ordinary expenditure to .last Saturday ammmted to £632,653,933, compared with £619,562,25-5 at February 24, 1934. With self-balancing items the total for the current year is £719,055,601, as against £705,215,300. AUSTRALIAN TRADE - j DEALINGS WITH EMPIRE FEWER BRITISH PURCHASES During the year 1933-34, in spite of the operation of thu Ottawa agreement, the export trade of Australia with the rest of the Empire declined, but imports from the remainder of the Empire showed a substantial increase, compared with the previous year. The decline in exports to the Empire was due to the decrease in Britain's purchases, which was more marksd than in the case of any other British possession. In 1933-JJ4 Britain purchased from Australia goods to the value of £63,955,032,, or 51.7 per cent of Australia's total exports. In 1932-33 the value of British purchases was £67,543,514, or 55.7 per cent of the total exports. Last year Austi-alia purchased from Britain goods to the value of £25,323,602, or 42.64 per cent of her total imports. In 1932-33 imports from Britain were valued at £23,543,000, or 41.68 per cent of the total imports. The general trade balance between Britain and Australia, however, still remains markedly to the advantage of the Commonwealth.

With the remaining British countries, Australia has a slightly adverse balance, but the net result of trade with the other dominions ani colonies shows that the objective of the Ottawa agreement is being realised by an increase in the relative value of both imports and exports.. The value of Australia's imports from the remainder of the Empire increased from £9,914,000 in 1932-33 to £10,674,000 in 1933-34, while the value of her exports to rest of the Empire increased in the same period from £9,403,000 to £9,643,000. Last year the value of Australia's import trade with Britain ancl" the rest of the Empire was £35,998,000, or 60.61 per cent of the total'imports, while the value of her export trade was £73,598,000, or 59.49 per cent of hei? total export trade. Because of decreased exports to the British market, Australia's foreign export trade showed an increase of about 4 per cent last year. The total value of exports to foreign countries last year was £50,105,000, or 40.51 per cent of the total exports. In 1932-33 it was £44,322,000, or 36.55 per cent of the total exports. Foreign imports last year wer valued at £23,355,000, or 39.39 per cent of the imports, while in the previous year the value of foreign imports was £23,032,000, or 40.77 per cent of imports.