The Brisbane Courier Fri 19 May 1893, p. 6
The late of postage on
newspapers for the United Kingdom has been a vexed question ever since the entry of the
Australasian colonies into the Universal Postal Union on 1st October 1891
Under the Postal Union
Convention and regulations newspapers are not recognised as such but are
classed with all other printed matter A uniform late is charged with a surtax
of half pence for every 2 oz or fraction thereof. The colonies have not
hitherto fallen in with the union regulations although some pressure has been
put upon them on the ground that it would be placing newspapers in a rather disadvantageous
position to compel them to pay postage according to weight. The Queensland for
instance, at the union rate would require 3 d postage to any union country, whereas
now it is carried to any part of the United Kingdom for 1 d irrespective of its
weight. At the Postal Conference held at Hobart in March 1892 the following
recommendation of the sub-committee was agreed to
- ' Newspapers We advise that
each newspaper be charged 1d for every 4 oz or fraction thereof. It is clear
that the practice at present followed in most of the colonies of sending
newspapers to the United Kingdom
at 1 d for each paper up to 10 oz or in some instances irrespective of weight must be
discontinued being as shown by the correspondence repugnant to the provisions
of the union …”
In seconding the motion that
this item be agreed to. Mr. Unmack said he did so with the same mental
reservation as the mover (Mr Duffy of Victoria), because he could not see his way to agree to it unless
forced into doing so by the Imperial Government. No action was therefore taken by the
colonies to alter the newspaper rates to the United Kingdom and in October last a despatch was
received from the Secretary of State for the Colonies covering a copy of a letter addressed by
the Imperial Post Office to the Colonial Office on the subject. In this letter
it was urged that the colonies should be informed that the time had now arrived
when they should conform to the stipulations of the Postal Union Convention in
this matter and ought not to expect the London Post Office any longer to
deliver in England as fully prepaid newspapers not prepaid
according to the rates fixed by the Postal Union Convention to which both the
mother country and the colonies are parties.
The subject was accordingly
brought forward at the recent Postal Conference in Brisbane when it was agreed after the
consent of the Imperial Post Office had been sought and obtained that the rate
to the United Kingdom should be for each newspaper not exceeding 4 oz., 1d for every additional 2
oz or fraction, half penny. This would place the United Kingdom in the same
position as other countries outside Australasia as far as postage on newspapers
from this colony is concerned and it has now been decided by the Governor in
Council that this rate shall come into force from the 1st July next.
