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8.—6

POST AND TELEGRAPH DEPARTMENT. The revenue of the Post and Telegraph Department paid over to the Consolidated Fund amounted to £3,077,735. Of this amount, the Postal Branch accounted for £1,414,081 ; telegrams, £371,251 ; toll messages, £312,120 ; and telephone-exchange receipts, £980,283. The telephone-exchange receipts show an increase over those for the previous year of about £113,000. The net expenditure out of the vote Post and Telegraph Working-expenses amounted to £2,406,791. There was thus a net excess of receipts over payments of £670,944, which is available to cover the interest on the loan capital of the Department. The presentation of the balance-sheet will, however, show the actual results on a commercial basis. The Post Office Savings-bank figures show an improvement over those for the previous year. There was in 1924-25 an excess of withdrawals over deposits of £830,712, whereas in 1925-26 the deposits amounted to £31,833,621 and the withdrawals to £32,602,506, an excess of withdrawals over deposits of £768,885. The position is still improving, as since the end of the year the amount of deposits has exceeded the amount of withdrawals. On the 31st March there were 758,188 depositors, and the total amount at their credit, exclusive of interest for the year, was £46,179,744. Money-orders and postal-notes issued totalled in value £5,907,171, and those paid £5,528,814. The first issue of Post Office investment certificates, in November, 1920, matured in November, 1925, and the redemptions to the end of March totalled £175,254. I would have expected to find a greater use by the public of this excellent form of small investment. STATE ADVANCES OFFICE. During the year £6,371,375 was added to the Capital Fund of the State Advances Office, which on the 31st March, 1926, totalled £33,148,274. The additional loanmoney provided has been used largely by farmers to establish themselves in permanent and profitable occupation of their lands, and by workers to provide homes for themselves and their families. The total advances current at the 31st March, 1926, were £30,296,837, being an increase on the previous year of £4,638,977. Owing to the high rate the Office has had to pay for the last few years for borrowed money, the Department during the year was obliged to increase the rates of interest payable on new loans. Although this has been done, the Department has assisted mortgagors to meet the increase by extending the terms of their loans, the result being that the half-yearly instalments payable under present rates amount to very little more than what borrowers were previously called upon to pay. The advances actually paid over during the year numbered 6,063 and amounted to £6,269,403. If proof of the assistance rendered to settlers and workers in regard to their financial needs be required, these figures amply furnish it. The new business for the year was as follows :-••• ■vr Amount. JNumber. £ Loans granted to settlers .. .. 4,747 5,409,310 Loans granted to workers .. 3,303 2,763,644 Loans granted to local authorities .. 112 157,520 8,162 £8,330,474 As in the previous year, a very large sum of money was provided last year for redemption of mortgages, and since the month of October, 1922, when it was decided to grant advances for this purpose, 9,833 loans have been granted, amounting to £12,030,265. The resources of the Office have been thus largely used to meet the demand for homes throughout the Dominion, and for advances to redeem existing mortgages on farm lands, but it is unlikely that new capital will be available to the same extent as in the last three years.

Post and Telegraph Department.

State Advances Office.