It will be noted that the number of articles delivered in all cases exceeds the number posted which indicates that a larger number of foreign-posted matter enters this country than goes out. The posted figures for all mail matter show an increase except in regard to parcels in which there is a slight falling-off. The delivered figures show an increase in printed papers, newspapers and parcels and a decrease in letters.
|
Telegrams.
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Forwarded.
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Delivered.
|
|
Ordinary
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3,083,292
|
3,120,237
|
|
Press Pages
|
34,163
|
124,429
|
It will be observed in connection with the above that the quantity of Press material sent from outside greatly exceeds the quantity despatched internally. An increase in the charge for Press messages would stimulate foreign Press material at the expense of home news, with consequent material and moral reactions.
Cash-on-Delivery System. — Number of parcels dealt with—12,991.
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Value of—
|
£
|
|
Money Orders issued
|
5,477,503
|
|
,,,, paid
|
7,177,626
|
|
Postal Orders issued
|
1,397,108
|
|
,,,, paid
|
1,636,871
|
|
Savings Bank deposits
|
1,092,244
|
|
Savings Bank withdrawals—
|
|
|
Free State
|
976,585
|
|
Great Britain
|
693,297
|
|
Postal Drafts, Old Age Pensions, Army and other drafts paid
|
4,425,321
|
|
Savings Certificate sold
|
820,991
|
|
,,,,repaid
|
186,698
|
|
Licences (Revenue, Dog and Wireless) issued
|
607,886
|
The value of money orders issued to countries outside An Saorstát was £779,000, while the value of money orders received from other countries was £2,469,000. A large proportion of the latter amount consisted of American remittances.
|
Telephones.
|
|
|
Trunks—Number of miles working, wire
|
11,600
|
|
Local Service, do
|
66,734
|
|
Do.Number of calls
|
20,000,000
|
In view of a possible public demand for a reduction in the postal rates to the British level, the following figures showing the estimated loss in revenue which would result from such a change may be of interest:—
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Letters.
|
|
|
Reduction from 2d. to 1½d. (min.) and adoption of the British rates
|
£240,318
|
|
Printed Papers.Reduction to British rates
|
£7,731
|
It will be seen that a reduction in the letter charges to the British rates would result in more than doubling the present loss in the working of the Post Office. This does not take account of possible increase in amount of posted matter.
The cash-on-delivery service is now on a permanent basis. The extent to which it is availed of is still small, but there is a gradual increase. The advantages of the system seem to be appreciated principally in Dublin. As its inherent advantages become recognised a considerable expansion is hoped for.
The extended use of motor transport for the conveyance of mails is being developed, both as regards contract services and Departmental vehicles driven by postmen.
Since last year the number of motorcar contracts has been increased by three, and the total of services now is ninety. The number of Departmental motor mail vans in use is 57, against 43 at the corresponding period last year.
Seven additional Departmental motor vans will be introduced during the next few weeks. These services are proving most satisfactory and economical.
Postal relations with foreign countries continue to develop in order to ensure the expeditious despatch and delivery of mails. In all cases in which the amount of correspondence available justifies that course direct despatches are made up. Such despatches are now exchanged between the Saorstát and, in addition to most European countries, the United States, Canada, Newfoundland and Argentine Republic, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, India, the Federated Malay States, the Straits Settlements, China and Hong Kong.
Parcel mails are still being forwarded by direct steamship in every case in which steamship facilities are available.
The fullest possible use continues to be made of the Cobh route, and during the last year forty-two thousand sacks of Saorstát mails passed through that port—an increase of over one thousand sacks on the traffic for the year 1926.
In addition to the money order conventions already in force with the Governments of the United States, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, Australia, India and South Africa, steps are being taken to set up similar agreements with Italy, Belgium and France.
The main telegraph routes are in good working order, and the only serious dislocations of the services were those occasioned by snowstorms in the County Mayo in December last.
During the year 1927 the contracts placed by the Stores Branch were allocated as follows:—
£322,716 on Saorstát manufactured articles.
£72,695 on British manufactured articles.
£46,722 on articles produced in other countries.
The value of uniform clothing and supplies on repayment to other Government Departments during 1927 was £183,899, which is approximately £50,000 greater than the value of stores supplied in the previous year.
During the year 1927 the following quantities of woollen and cotton piece goods were examined:—
|
Woollen
|
293,343 yards.
|
|
Cotton
|
491,574,,
|
The canvas required for the manufacture of mail bags was, with the exception of 15,000 yards, obtained in the Saorstát.
The staff employed in January, 1928, numbered 12,585 as compared with 12,622 last year. Apart from part-time postmen and sub-postmasters the major portion of the staff consists of Civil Service certificated officers. The employment of such a large number of part-time auxiliary postmen is rendered necessary by the peculiar conditions of the country so as to afford delivery in rural areas at a reasonably early hour by an arrangement of short post routes radiating from the various delivery offices. Longer routes warranting the employment of full-time postmen would extend deliveries well into the afternoon to the detriment of the services rendered rural residents, and in many cases postmen who collect correspondence for post would miss connection with the outgoing mail by reason of their late return from delivery.
One unfortunate effect of the use of so many part-time postmen, on the popular mind, is to create the idea that the Post Office delivery staff have an exceedingly soft time, getting a full day's pay for a few hours' work. Persons with this idea should know that a large proportion of our outdoor staff is part-time and only paid by the hour.
Discipline in the service is well maintained. Within the comparatively short period in which I have had responsibility for the administration of the Post Office it has not been possible for me to obtain a complete knowledge of staff efficiency and courtesy, but from my observations and the information available I am satisfied that the general standard is high. The courtesy of our staff recently brought forth a highly flattering testimonial from a leading American journalist. This is a reputation which it is expected to maintain.
Encouragement is given to existing officials to acquire a good knowledge of the Irish language and many officials are attending classes held under the auspices of either the Gaelic League or the Education Department. Last year an examination for Learnerships was held and as a result 15 candidates from the Gaeltacht—all Irish speakers—and 61 candidates from outside the Gaeltacht were successful. Many of the latter candidates have a good knowledge of Irish and only one failed to get at least 50 per cent. in Irish at the examination.
Officers stationed within the Gaeltacht who are competent to do their work in Irish are being required to do so as far as possible and an extension of this principle is aimed at.
It is generally accepted that the Post Office is amongst Government Departments the nearest approach there is to a commercial institution, and the one which should therefore be administered as far as possible on a self-supporting basis. It renders necessary services to the public, in regard to which it is generally speaking in a monopolistic position. In return it receives payment at fixed rates. It may be contended that the Post Office should be regarded purely as a business organisation and that it should be expected to pay its way. In this connection, however, in the Saorstát there is a good deal of loose thinking and uninformed talking. There is no doubt the Post Office could be placed on a paying basis—but at a cost. Owing to the fact that the Irish services formed an integral portion of the British system in the past, it so happened that we secured the full services and advantages which were granted to that country. The British system, which is a paying service, it must be remembered, catered for a thickly populated area, principally commercial and industrial. There was truly an outer fringe of thinly populated country, mostly agricultural in nature. It was considered expedient to apply the same services to all portions of the countries, even though a sectional analysis would show that the service to the rural areas was subsidised by the services in the urban districts. It might be argued, in fact, that the entire service stood together as one conglomerate whole and that any effort to differentiate between services rendered would so affect the whole structure as to be not only impolitic but uneconomic. During this period the Irish branch of the service was regarded much as that given to one of the large agricultural areas of England, and taken as a separate unit would have been financially insolvent. The establishment of separate control in the Free State meant in effect the cutting off of portion of the uneconomic fringe of the British service, with in addition the increased cost of central and overhead administration expenses which it is impossible to avoid in dealing with a smaller economic unit. It should, therefore, be clear that those who expect us to compete on level terms with the British administration are asking for the impossible.
It became clear to those in control after the change of administration that if the Post Office service in the Free State was to be administered in anything approaching an economic fashion, it would be necessary to make reorganisations and re-adjustments so as to bring the service into line with the economic resources of the country. Therefore, during the past recent years the internal working of the Department has been reorganised and overmen hauled as a result of which substantial economies have been effected. The major economies which were effected in the early days of our administration were reasonably obvious and did not involve the same extensive examination of departmental expenditure which was essential to securing the progressive improvement in our financial position which has taken place. While every effort is still used to economise, it is evident that without further impairment of essential services substantial savings cannot be made, and that the minor economies which may be brought about by the most careful scrutinising of all spending, cannot have any appreciable effect in reducing the present deficit.
It must further be borne in mind that while the Post Office is regarded as a commercial organisation it suffers from certain disabilities inherent in Parliamentary control, which add to the expense of administration and subtract from its efficiency.
Owing to the fact of Parliamentary control the records of the Post Office have to be kept in such a manner that even the most trivial happening within the service is recorded in minutest detail, so that questions by Deputies on any phase or aspect of the administration may be answered at short notice. Information must be available as to the appointment of say a part-time postman in the remotest portion of the country, and the time of highly-paid and expert officials is taken up in preparation of information which would never be required in a business organisation of an ordinary commercial character, where there would be a proper devolution of responsibility and where servants would be judged on results to a large extent.
It is also manifestly impossible to prune down services to an absolute economic minimum. Many branches of the services rendered are not on a remunerative basis, but the cutting down and lopping off of the unremunerative limbs and branches might leave the tree as a whole in a starved and impoverished condition.
Recognising that it is not possible to clear our losses by internal economies, if we are expected to establish the service on a paying basis it is plain that we must adopt either of the following expedients or a combination of the two:—
(a) Adjusting the sectional services on a revenue basis, that is, restricting public services and facilities until they are remunerative.
(b) Increasing present charges to a paying level.
As to the first, there have been restrictions of public facilities. These aimed at cutting out or reducing the most unremunerative services, and, on the whole, the policy of retrenchment on non-paying services must be regarded in the circumstances as sound. But a too rigid retrenchment might prove unsound both politically and economically. The value of the communication services of the Post Office must be judged by other considerations in addition to those of profit and loss on the immediate service. They link the cities with the country, and while the thickly populated areas yield greater revenue, it must be recognised that in an agricultural country such as the Free State the urban residents are largely dependent for their livelihood from the produce of farming occupations, and that any restrictions in rural services would eventually react on the towns. The urban dwellers would be the slowest to recommend restrictions on that account. It may, therefore, be accepted that any further restriction of services with a view to eliminating the present loss would definitely impair the whole communication machinery of the Post Office.
As to the alternative of increasing the present rates where they are non-paying, I have pointed out that the postal is our main service. It gives the largest revenue and will continue to be the service of greatest general utility for many years at least. If postage rates are to be made remunerative they must have relation to the operative and administrative costs, and on this basis many of our present postage rates are non-paying. But rates must also have relation to the revenue yielding possibilities and they must be made attractive for revenue purposes. An increase in certain charges might in present stringent economic conditions result in such a decrease in revenue as to make our last condition worse than our first. This argument does not, of course, apply to a service such as telegraphs which is so unremunerative that even should an increase of rates have the effect of completely wiping it out there would be a gain rather than a loss, owing to a saving in administration and operating expenses.
It would appear therefore that the hope of an improvement in our financial position lies in the expectation of increased revenue which must result from an improvement in the general economic conditions in the country. We have been passing through a period of unparalleled depression. There are indications that economic conditions are improving. An improvement in conditions is always reflected in increased postal revenue.
As a general summing up of the financial position of the Post Office, it is noted that the loss borne by the Exchequer after taking over from the British exceeded £1,000,000. Portion of this deficit was perhaps abnormal, but substantially it was very high. This loss has been steadily reduced. Part of the reduction was perhaps automatic and depended on such things as the cost of living, but it may be accepted that the major reductions were brought about by retrenchment within the service and slightly improved revenue. Indications are that the improvement will be maintained. The loss is being therefore gradually and substantially reduced. It might be immediately cleared by passing the amount of the loss on to the Post Office users. This is a course which I feel sure would not find favour with the Dáil or the country.
