SOUTH ISLAND TO AUSTRALIA.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 19165, 23 November 1927, Page 9

SOUTH ISLAND TO AUSTRALIA.

SHIPPING SERVICE. PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE REPORTS. [THE PRESS Special Service.] WELLINGTON, November 22. The South Island-Australia Shipping Facilities Committee reported to both Houses of Parliament to-day. The Committee declared its opinion that the present arrangement for the Government fruit steamer to call at Lyttelton was very unsatisfactory, and the Department of External Affairs having admitted that a limited number of trips could be made further south, the Committeo suggested that the Maui Pomare should call at Dunedin at least four times per annum, so that fruit might be landed in good order and at a reasonable price. The Committee also recommended that in view of the unsatisfactory shipping service between Australin ami the South Island, via Bluff, the Government should commence negotiations with the Australian Government with a view to ascertaining if it is not to the interest of both parties to establish a better service. •Mr J. A. Nash, who brought down the report in the House of Representatives, said the Union Company had pointed out that the present loss on the Melbourne service was £24,000 per annum. They were averse from asking for any subsidy, because it was impossible, under present circumstances, to give a better service An additional steamer in the Melbourne service would result in a loss of £IOO,OOO a year. The present steamer, the Manuka, was costing from £42") to £450 a day to run. A steamer between Melbourne and Bluff only was impracticable. Last year 'y 1099 tourists had been carried from Melbourne to the South Island. The number of passengers travelling from Sydney to New Zealand was increasing, while from Melbourne there had been a steady decrease. Mr Howard he did not blame the Union Company so much as the present combination of circumstances that existed. There should be some arrangement come to between the two countries concerned, New Zealand and Australia. The onus was now on the Minister for Industries and Commerce to get into communication with tur Australian friends and see if some arrangement- could not be come to. Sir Joseph Ward said the Committee had gone thoroughly into the matter. The company could not, at their own cost, supply the necessary service. The service was, however, a necessary one. He pointed out that the population of the Otago and Southland provincial dis trict was 181,000, of Auckland 211,228. of Wellington 179,868, and Canterbury 159,303. Therefore the only district greater than Otago and Southland was that of Auckland, which was 211,228 An Auckland member: That's the population of the city. Sir Joseph Ward said the only way a satisfactory service could be run between the South Island and Australia was by,means of a subsidy. The whole system had been changed since the war by the direct services between Auckland and Sydney, and Wellington and Sydney. The South Island was losing population, and that should be stopped, and this could be done only by giving that Island material assistance. Sir Joßeph Ward added that ho did not know of anything more important to the South Island, from Timaru. right down, than the establishment of a regular service between the South Island and Australia. The Hon. Mr McLeod said that leaving out Nelson and Marlborough, which were directly served from Wellington, the Auckland provincial district, including Maoris, had a greater population than all the rest of the South Island, so that a comparatively small population would be served by the suggested South Island service. The total amount paid for the Wellington-'Frisco service was £25,000, of which £12,500 was paid by the Industries and Commerce Department, the balance, being postal. The amount for the Vancouver service was £20,000, of which £IO,OOO was paid by the Industries and Commerce Department. Thus the total amount for. the trade service with San Francisco and Vancouver was £22,500. That sum would not, however, give the South Island any better service than it had to-day. Mr Tapley (Dunedin North) said Dunedin people believed that a more regular service would develop a larger trade. Ho suggested alternate services between the North and the South Islands. The Union Company might give a regular and more .frequent service than the three-weekly service. He felt sure the Government would give the matter its careful consideration. Mr J. McC. Dickson said the majority of the Committee was satisfied that no one was to blame for the present position. The cargo traffic was nothing like what it used to be, and the Unioh Company was losing money from day to day on the present service. The great handicap was the geographical position, which no Government could improve. Island Service.

Speaking on. the Committee's report on the Maui Pomare service, Mr Howard said that in this matter he was in the minority, in bo far as the Committee's finding was concerned. In other words, he believed the Department was right and the Committee wrong. Tho southern people should stand by the Department, and give the boat a chance on the proposed itinerary. If they ran the service to Dunedin it would take three days, and that would cost £3OO a trip, which would have to be charged to the ship. In bad weather the cost would be more, and the ship would in consequence have to make fewer trips between New Zealand and the Islands. Instead of doing that it would be far better, instead of subsidising the ship, to subsidise the railway service to carry the freight from Lyttelton southwards. He hoped they would stand by this little ship and give her a chance. All the private companies had turned them down. Mr Tapley said Mr Howard would have shown more fairness had ho taken up the view of the majority. The Dunedin merchants would far rather pay the subsidy to the ship to go to DunedTn than get the fruit railed to Dunedin. fiie member for Chnstchurch South was keen on this service because he wanted a State-owned service. (Labour hear, hears.) Dunedintfces would far rather pay extra fortheir Fruit to make up the £3OO loss per trin Mr Howard nad taken up a self-satisfied manner in dealine with the matter.

Sir Joseph Ward also dissented from the view taken by Mr Howard.. The evidence indicated that the fruit, if railed, would be next door to useless. The Minister for Industries and Commerce said the country would not tolerate a Government running services in which substantial losses occurred. The proposal as outlined by the Department should be given a trial for one year, and the scheme could be enlarged if it were shown that the demand for fruit was increasing. "I am anxious to see Dunedin served with ita fair share of fruit," said the Minister for External Affairs, who added that in view of the unfortunate position in Samoa the fruit prospects would be very bad and the crop of bananas would not be so large as anticipated. The vessel, therefore, would have a struggle for the first year. The report was tabled.