Primage On Territory
p. 14 · Read in the full issue
Products.
Anomaly Which Requires Attention.
THE following correspondence is self explanatory. Those who ship pro duce from Papua to Australia will heartily endorse the ancient saying that “the law is a hass.”
We have sent the correspondence on to the Sydney Chamber of Commerce, in the hope that representations may be made to the Federal Government, to give to Papua and New Guinea the same advantages as Norfolk Island.
Letter from editor of “The Pacific Islands Monthly” to Collector of Cus toms, Sydney, dated June 23, 1932: Dear Sir, —Some of our readers have asked us to ascertain why primage is charged on goods imported into Aus tralia from Papua, whereas there is no primage charge on similar goods im ported into Australia from Norfolk Is land. Both places are Territories of Australia and both are similarly gov erned from Canberra through Admin istrators in each place. If you could let me have a brief explanation of the position, I should be glad of your per mission to publish same for the in formation of a number of readers who appear to be somewhat puzzled by the circumstances.
Letter from Collector of Customs to “The Pacific Islands Monthly,” dated September 30, 1932: Dear Sir, —With reference to your letter of 23.6.32, relative to Primage Duty on goods imported into Australia from Norfolk Island and Papua, I quote hereunder for your information, Sec tion 15 of the Norfolk Island Act, 1913: “Duties of Customs shall not be chargeable on goods imported into Australia from Norfolk Island if the goods— (a) Are the produce or manufacture of Nor folk Island: and (b) are shipped direct from Norfolk Island to Australia; and (c) are not goods which if manufactured or produced in Australia would be subject to any Duty of Excise.
Primage duty being duty of customs is not, therefore, chargeable on goods from Norfolk Island exempted from duty under the above quoted section.
As no similar provision to that shown above is embodied in the PapuaAct, 1905-24, Primage Duty is chargeable on goods imported into Australia from Papua.