CABLE SUBSIDY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1259, 14 October 1911, Page 5

CABLE SUBSIDY.

NEW SCHEME CRITICISED. By Teleeraph—Press Association—Copyright Melbourne, October 15. In the Federal House of Represent aHtos, Mr. W. E. Johnson, member for tho Lang Division, Now Soutli Wales, declared thai when tho independent cable service was started members wero led to believe that thrco hundred newspapers were prepared to take messages. It was now found that under a dozen wero taking them after over JC2OOO had been spent i'l subsidies. Tho Government would do well to look at' somo of tho "scare" headlines published in connection with tho new service. As a financial transaction thoy were concerned in seeing that what subsidising the Government did should not bo for party purposes and misrepresentation of facts. The Premier, Mr. A. Fisher, declared that ho could prove that the public had gained more than it had given up. He indicated that the Government might increase the term over which the subsidy was payable, but it would not increaso the annual amount. In October, 1900, a Select Committee of tho Commonwealth Senato was appointed to report upon the question of tho supply, conditions of sale, and distribution, which control the Press Cable Service within and from outside tho Commonwealth. A majority report of this Committee was issued in December, 1909, and recommended (a) the completion of an "All Hod" cable route via Canada; (b) tho conditional subsidisation of a press cable association; (c) tho utilisation of tho High Commissioner's office for the dissemination in Australia of Empiro news; and (d) the amendment of the Copyright Act in regard to cables. In accordance with the recommendations of the Committeo the Commonwealth has granted a subsid.y of £6000, extending over a period of three years, to the Independent Press Cable Service, on tho conditions that at least 6000 cablo words are supplied each week, to be sent via Pacific, and that any newspaper proprietary in the Commonwealth is permittod Co become a subscriber at rates approved by tho Government.