§ 42. Mr. Stephen Hastingsasked the Postmaster-General what is the average delay of letter and parcel post from the United Kingdom to Australia by sea mail.
§ Mr. BennIn the normal way the time from posting of surface mail in this country to its arrival in Australia can vary from 30 to 75 days. This variation is due to the varying intervals between sailings, varying sailing times and so on. The period is extended on occasions when delays occur in dealing with the mail in post offices, on the railways or on the docks. If, in consequence, the mail misses a sailing and has to wait for some time for the next possibly slower one the overall delay can be appreciable.
I regret, however, that our records do not enable me to state the average delay on these occasions. However, if the hon. Member has any particular case in mind and will let me have details I shall gladly look into it.