Caledonians

Hard Times

Ahead For

French Governor J-G Eriau warned of necessary austerity mea sures, mounting unemployment and a stem line against trouble-makers, when he opened the current budget session of the New Caledonian Territorial Assembly in mid- November.

Governor Eriau, not long returned from Paris, pointed out the value of French “national solidarity” when he promised that the Paris govern ment would meet the growing budget deficit faced by an island which France had earlier predicted would be the world’s second greatest pro ducer of nickel by 1975.

Following several years massive build-up of the island’s public ser vice in preparation for the nickel developments, Governor Eriau has now announced that there must be sackings in the service. The lopsided growth of the civil service has led to its consuming practically all terri torial revenue, forcing the islanders to engage upon extensive, costly loans besides subsidies from France, to pay for massive infrastructural programmes.

Since, legally, the Caledonian budget must balance each year, the governor announced a handout of about SAIS million from France, of which about half is to make up for the nickel export tax exemption granted to the SLN mining company.

Amid the current economic gloom, the Territorial Assembly is sending yet another mission to Paris in Janu ary to try to obtain some decisive action over nickel industry expansion.

Meanwhile, referring to his recent talks with French President Giscard d’Estaing, Governor Eriau stressed that local trouble-makers in the pre sent difficult circumstances would promptly be brought to justice as in recent cases.

The governor saw two main prob lems facing the economy—an in :rease in unemployment coupled with a rise in prices which in 1974 was jxpected to exceed 18 per cent. At the same time, expansion in the lickel industry (68,000 tonnes of metal exported in 1974) was not sufficient to support all the expendi ture undertaken and the islanders were warned that they would have to contribute more to the island’s de velopment if they were to expect future aid from France. The French Administration has proposed a 1975

budget expenditure of 10,000 million CFP (SA9O million) with a rise in indirect taxes of about SAI4 million.

Governor Eriau detailed future prospects for nickel development, ad mitting that the recent shelving of the new factory for the north was a “hard blow” for the territory. Most likely advance is now awaited from the joint project of the SEN and the state oil company SNPA (Aqui taine). But first, certain tax con cessions must be agreed upon to make the venture workable.

Meanwhile, the message for the

Caledonians is that Paris has achieved a prestigious new airport terminal, port installations, sporting stadiums and the rest but has failed to match this with appropriate revenue-producing industrialisation, Although it was Paris and not the Caledonians who controlled the execution of these expensive develop ment contracts, the locals have now been told to tighten their belts, pay for the beautiful spectacle and woe to those who impinge upon others’ democratic rights by contesting the situation.

PNG timber men

oppose export tax

The logging industry in Papua New Guinea —largely operated by Australian interests—fears for the future unless the government starts helping it instead of hitting it, the president of the PNG Forests Indus try Association, Mr M. Ross, told members of his executive.

But the Natural Resources Minis ter, Mr Jephcott, said the govern ment was fully sympathetic to the problems of the industry and was keeping the situation under constant review.

The association has put forward a number of proposals which it be lieves would help the industry, but it claims that a newly-announced government export tax of five per cent on the value of unprocessed logs is hindering instead of helping.

Mr Ross said the logging and saw milling industries now appeared to be in such a bad way that new taxes would force weaker members out of operations.

Collapse of the Japanese log buying market after a period of boom purchases is one of the fac tors affecting the industry.

The association wants the govern ment to protect banking overdrafts; which have been extended to logging operators, and to refund royalties which were paid on logs frequently left rotting on the beach because of shipping problems.

Mr Jephcott said the government was about to establish a consultative body which would continually review logging and sawmilling industries.

Attempts would also be made to divert logs left on beaches to local processing plants, using transit over seas ships where necessary if coastal shipping was inadequate.

He said the government had already provided assistance by giving road-working contracts to surplus logging plant in West New Britain and on Manus island.

New Caledonia opens

its fifth bank

New Caledonia’s fifth and newes bank opened its doors in Noumea on September 16. Known as li Banque de Nouvelle Caledonie, it if not a national or government sponsored bank but formed by the Credit Lyonais of France (40 pe cent); the Bank of Hawaii (25 pei cent); Breaud (10 per cent); Cale donian shareholders (25 per cent).