TELEPHONE CHARGES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18906, 5 July 1923, Page 8

TELEPHONE CHARGES.

BASIS or THE NEW BATES

AIMS OF DEPARTMENT.

MUST PAY ITS WAY.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 4. The now telephone charges were discussed in the House of Representatives this afternoon, many members advocating greater concessions to isolated country settlers. The Postmaster-general (the Hon. J. G. Coates), in reply, said the department welcomed criticism. He was somewhat surprised that when some speakers praised the department, the member for Nelson and also the Leader of the Opposition interjected that it was ‘‘slobber.” It was right that the officers of the department should,be given praise, for there was no set of men moro anxious to improve the service and to meet the wishes of members and the requirements of the public. The Government insisted that the department must -cay inleiost on the amount of capital invested, such as borrowed money that had gone into buildings, telegraph and telephone extension, and wireless plant. While it was in the main a revenue-earn-ing department, yet it was a developmental department, and he thought it should be laid down that it should pay interest and sinking fund. Not only had the department this year paid working expenses, but also £460,000 in interest, and it still showed a profit of about £IOO,OOO. The year’s working, therefore, had been satisfactory. In view of the fact that the telephone services in the -past, had been bolstered up by other branches of the department, he contended that the basis of the readjustment of the charges was sound, and that it was progressive. The New Zealand telephone charges were the cheapest in the world, and the dominion occupied fourth place in the world for the number of telephones per head of population. The new rates had the effect of increasing the charges for private telephones within the one and a-half miles base rate areas, and decreased the charges- to a limit of three and a-half miles. That was in the four large cities. In regard to country districts the new scale meant no increase to private residences, and in areas of fewer than 1000 subscribers it involved a reduction. Those people were not able to ring up 10,000 subscribers, but only 200, SCO, and so on up to 1000, and accordingly they Were asked to pay on the basis of service. Then came tho exchanges with 10,000 subscribers, and in this connection the charge for the telephone at Lyall Bay, for instance, would be less than even it had been in the past four years. A total of 10,900 telephones had been connected in the city areas. 7000 in intermediate exchanges and 19,000 in the country districts. The increase in the city areas was 50 per cent, in tho. intermediate areas 60 per cent., and in the country districts 70 per cent. It would, therefore, be seen that the telex-hones in the country districts had increased at the greatest rate. Tho extension of telephones to tho backblooks affected the whole of the development. The argument had been used that because Id was paid for a letter it should bo delivered to the door, no-matter where, the person lived. That was impracticable. He did not think the department could go much further than it had gone at present in repoect of telephones for tho country settlers. The number of people on the waiting list for telephones was loss now than at any time during the past four or five years. During the war it mounted up to 10,000, but now it was down to 5000. Last year between £7OO.CCO and £750.000 was spent in telephone construction, and to catch up about £1.000.000 was required. With reference to the slot telephones the department would provide them anywhere where the revenue was guaranteed.