1931
Coming to Fremantle we have the following com parisons between 1914 and 1931 ( not including common wealth light dues) :- Comparison of port charges of Steamer 10,048 tons gross 6,262 tons net, berthing in Fremantle Harbour for a period of 24 hours. in 1914 and 1931.
PORT CHARGES 1914
£ s. d.
Harbour and light Department- Tonnage Dues 26 1 10
Fremantle Harbour Trust- Port Dues 19 11 11
Do. do - Pilotage, Sea to Roads 21 0 0
Do do - Roads to berth and return 4 0 0
Do do - mooring 0 7 6
H.M Customs - Bill health- 0 2 6
£71 — 3s— 9d
PORT CHARGES 31 Commonwealth light Dues — Harbour and Light Department — Tonnage Dues £41. —s17—. 4d.
Fremantle Harbour Trust — Port Dues £41—17s—4d
Do do —War surtax, 20 per cent £8 7s 6d
Do do— Pilotage sea to roads £21 0s 0d
Do do— pilotage road to berth and return £14 0s 0d
Do do— War surtax, 20 per cent £7 0s. 0d
Do do — mooring £ 1 10s 0d
Do do—Cleaning Berth £1 0s 0d
Do do—Bill, health £1 0s 0d
£132. 2s. 2d.
FREMANTLE HARBOUR TRUST:— IT IS SIGNIFICANT THAT FOLLOWING AMOUNTS THE HARBOUR TRUST ACCOUNTS CONSOLIDATED REVENUE : —
1926/27.— 1927/28— 1928/29 — 1929/30 —1930/31.
£159,857— £143,197 — £173,984— £200,529 —£121,225
It might be pertinently stated that the Fremantle Harbour Trust is a taxing Machine chiefly on the primary producer, and it m9ight be conceded that the burden falls mainly on primary producers and most certainly does , as in years of heavy productions of wheat and wool, the exports so considerably exceed imports.
In the charges for handling wheat direct to ships ex railway trucks, the Fremantle Harbour Trust charge for slinging or working bags to elevator approaches is .25 pence per bushel. whereas in Bunbury, with facilities far inferior to those of Fremantle , but where labour is controlled by the merchants or shippers the cost is .214 pence per bushel. This leads your commissioners to the conclusion that cost could be reduced by eliminating the harbour Trust 's intermediary service on the wharf and allow the handling to be controlled by the merchants or pool.
In the case when wheat is stacked into shed, and subsequently shipped, the Fremantle charge is .758 pence per bushel at outport ; it is received into shed, stacked, and reloaded into trucks for one penny per bag each service or .66 pence per bushel with poorer facilities Storage charges for wheat at Fremantle are exorbitant and are more then 100 per cent higher than outports; the Fremantle Harbour Trust charge is Delivered direct into trucks:
WHARFAGE HARBOUR CHARGES HARBOUR IMPROVEMENT PER BALE. PER BALE. RATE PER TON Wool, in bales, etc 9d. 5d. 6d.
Wool per two pockets, etc 9d 5d 6d.
For Transhipment
Wool in bales, etc 1s. 6d 7d nil
Wool per two pockets, etc 1s. 6d 7d nil
Note.— Wharfage and Harbour Improvement rate subject to 20 per cent surtax.
one- sixth of a penny per bag per week plus 20 per cent. surtax, whereas private firms at outports charge one - twelth of a penny per bag per week and, in one case a reduction of one-third was made on and after the 1st of April last. The conclusions are evident.
In the evidence of excessive port charge at Fremantle, it is not surprising that the following is emphasised: " THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN and other Australian ports are considered to be among the highest in the world" the average loading cost at Fremantle for wheat vessels, is a little over 6s. per ton compared with 2s.2d.to 2s. 11d. at Canadian ports 4s. 11d. Buenos Ayres and 3s. 4d.at Cape town.
Wool— The existing scale of charges on wool is found in the official document as follows——
Delivered at Wharf Shed, Berth.
Wharfage per bale Harbour charges per bale Harbour improvement rate per ton.
Wool (in bales), 5 B/ to the Ton 9d 7d 6d
Wool per two pockets, bundles or bags (10 pockets, bungles or bags to the Ton) 9d 7d 6d