AUSTRALIA'S WOODEN SHIPS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 255, 23 July 1919, Page 6

AUSTRALIA'S WOODEN SHIPS

HUGE COST OF CONTRACT. An important statement relating to tho cancellation of contracts for the building of wooden ships in' Australia was made bv the Acting-Minister for the Navy m >he House of Representatives yesterday in reply to a question asked by Mr. Mahony (New South Wales). The Acting-Minister said the contracts which had been cancelled wero the Wallace Power Boat Company's- contract for six ships; and Hughes, Martin and Washington's contract for six ships. ICidman and Mayoh's contract for six ships hail been varied by the cancellation of four of tho vessels. As regards compensation, the Wallace Power Boat Co. were paid one sum of .£55,000; Hughes, Martin and Washington wore paid one sum of ,£72,500; Kidman and Mayoh would he paid at the rate of .£5 per ton dead-weight capacity of the four ships, which would amount to approximately ,£52,0D0. The reasons for cancellation and payments were that Ihe Government considered it sound policy, afte,r the conclusion of (he war, not to, complete the contracts for wooden ships, and tho payments made included progress payments and covered contractors' liabilities, as well as some measure of compensation. Advice had been received from the Commissioner fop Australia in the United- States indicating that contracts for building .185 wooden vessels wero cancelled by the American Government, at an averago cost of .£l3 ss. 4d. per ton, or a total cost of ,£14,942,STi), and that they further cancelled the building of 52 ships at a, cost rather more than that involved in tho cancellation of the 355 ships. This included 342 vessels the construction of which had not commenced, and 94 vessels in various stages of construction, mostly under 50 per cent, completed.

The Acting-Minister for tho Navy told Mr. Higgs (Queensland), in the House of Representatives, that tho Act-ing-Prime Minister would make a complete statement at an o.iu'ly date regarding Ihe shipbuilding programme of the Government, Ho intimated that tho cabled news as to the Prime Minister's ordering certain ships of 22,00(1 tonnage was not correct, Mr. Higgs had asked whether there was any necessity for eecrecy regarding tho matter in view of tho cablegrams that had been published.