LETTER POST TWOPENCE

Taranaki Daily News, 27 February 1931, Page 9

LETTER POST TWOPENCE

INCREASE IN ALL CHARGES

MINIMUM TELEGRAM A SHILLING.

PACKET AND PARCEL POST HIGHER

By Telegraph.—Press Association.

Wellington, Feb. 26. The new postal and telegraph charges have been announced. Briefly the charges are: " Lettters, 2d instead of Iff. Postcards, Id instead of Late fee 2d instead c' Id.

Packets, Id for each 4oz instead of Id for each 2oz up to 21b and 2d lb thereafter.

Newspapers, Id for each Soz instead of jd per copy. Registration fee, 4d instead of 3d. Parcels, (id lb for first 21b and 3d lb thereafter up to illb. Fragile fees of 6d and 9d on parcels • are doubled. Telegrams are increased to a penny a word with a minimum of Is with urgent telegrams at double that rate. Night letter telegrams will be charged Is for 24 words.

Radio telegrams will be 5d and lOd a word to 6d and Hd «

The Press rate of Is 6d per 100 words will remain, but a limit of 6000 words will be imposed on Press messages for nwr.ing papers lodged after 5 p.m. For evening papers the limit after 5 p.m. is fixed at 1000 words. Words in excess of those maxima are being charged Tor at the rate of id each.

BOMBSHELL FOR NEWSPAPERS

SERIOUS RESULTS TO PUBLIC.

Wellington, Last Night. Interviewed on the subject of the new post and’ telegraph regulations as affecting the Press of the Dominion, the president of the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association, Mr. C. W. Earle, stated the effect would be very prejudicial to the general public as well as imposing a heavy burden on the newspapers. At the recent annual conference of newsaper proprietors it was found necessary to take immediate steps to endeavour to reduce the cost of newspaper production. At the same time it was felt to be eminently necessary to maintain an adequate standard of service to the community in local and overseas news.

“Plans to enable these ideas to be given effect were in train,” said Mr. Earle, “when this bombshell from the Government is exploded. The doubling of the postage on newspapers means an additional cost of 13s a year to those of the public at present least able to bear it, that is in the main, to those living in outlying country districts. It will also check to some extent at least the send; ing overseas of weekly journals, which serve a valuable purpose in advertising New Zealand and its attractions abroad. “The increased Press telegraph charges, for that is what the proposals amount to, must necessarily mean heavy curtailment of existing news services, and therefore of community of interest between different parts of the. Dominion, which depend very largely on knowledge of one another’s affairs. Wide and general circulation of news happenings as between different centres of population is an. important factor in promoting understanding of one another’s problems and in breaking down parochial barriers which impede national progress. “With the charges now proposed there must be a cut in telegraphic news of at least 50 per cent., and probably a good deal more. I -have not had time to examine fully the effects of the increased charges ■as affecting newspapers, but judging from the protests which have already reached me they are regarded as being very far-reaching and likely to be very prejudicial to the general public.

THE GOVERNMENT’S REASONS MINISTER IN EXPLANATION. Wellington, Last Night. The Postmaster-General (the Hon. J. B. Donald) in explaining the reasons for the increases in postage and telegraph chargee, states the postage increases have been made in order to provide for the Consolidated Fund £900,000 per annum, which the Prime Minister has already intimated was to be obtained by such means in order to assist in balancing next year’s Budget, and that the tefegraph increases have been made in order to reduce to a considerable extent the loss on the working of that branch. It is not anticipated that the increases in postage charges, after allowance is made for' the falling off in business to be expected as a result of the increases, Will realise more than the amount required for the Consolidated JJtind, and therefore the Minister anticipates his department will not receive anything for itself from the increases and will still have to bear a loss on the working of the. postal branch. It will be observed that the -increases have been distributed amongst all • classes of mail matter, and that in particular newspapers will pow be charged for according to weight and parcels in excess of 111 b. will not be accepted. It has been found that the cost to the -department of conveyance alone of ■heavy newspapers and parcels was much in excess of the postage derived therefrom, and that in regard to parcels ■ weighing above 111 b. their acceptance could not be continued at charges that ■ would enable business. to be .retained. Moreover, it is considered that the Railway Department makes adequate provision for the conveyance of parcels over Ulb. in weight, which were accepted by the post office only for places served by rail or sea. In this connection it is mentioned that the parcels post was established in order to provide ready means for the transit of small parcels, and that it might reasonably be held that this purpose is fully served by fixing the maximum weight at 111 b. Regarding the altered rate of postage on newspapers, nowadays most newspaper companies make their own arrangements for delivery other than through the post office, except to distant subscribers over a larger area than when the low newspaper postage charges were fixed and are issuing much larger papers. It can hardly be said one halfpenny is adequate payment for delivery to any town in New Zealand of a paper weighing from 6oz. to 140 z., but for a long time the post office has been payino- much more for transport of. these papers than was received in postage. The parcel rates as now ordered are still very cheap, and no doubt the public will still find it convenient and economical to send its smaller parcels through the post office. Other postal increases are minor. As regards the telegraph charges, for some years past there has been a large and increasing loss on the working of the telegraph branch, due to the fact that the rates were not nearly comnieneurate with the cost of operation. As a matter of fact the ordinary telegram rate has. been the cheapest in the Bri- . tish Empire. For the year ended. March 31, 1930, the loss was approximately £134,000, and for the current year it will certainly be larger. The average cost of handling a telegram from the Hjoint of lodgment until it reaches the

addressee, exceeds the average re\enue per telegram .by approximately sd. Deepite the most rigid economy and the introduction’ < r labour-saving apparatus it has been found impossible to reduce the loss to any appreciable extent. While the greater portion of the deficit is .incurred in the handling of commercial and social business, the transmission of Press traffic is also responsible for a heavy loss. It is'only equitable, therefore, that, the newspaper proprietors as well as the general public should be called upon to pay a portion of the increased charges. With this in mind a limit is being imposed on the amount of Press news that may be transmitted under the Cheap Press rates. It is estimated that the additional revenue that. will accrue • under the amended telegraph charges will _ rea< ;h £86,000 per annum: and while this will still leave substantial loss, it will place the telegraph branch in a much less unfavourable position and assure as fai as possible that the department as a whole continues to be self-supporting. The Minister explained that the new rates were being, introduced at short notice, on March 1, in order to give the Government the much needed additional revenue for one month of this financial year as a set-off to some extent to the extraordinary expenditure and serious loss of revenue in Hawke’s Bay as. a lesult of the earthquake.