§ Sir T. Beamishasked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that a Christmas card posted to Australia on 4th November by the hon. and gallant Member for 53W Lewes, and another card posted in Whit-church on 19th October, were both delivered on 5th January; what is the average time taken for mail of this kind to reach Australia; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. BennThe overall time from posting to delivery of surface mail for Australia depends on incidence of sailings, voyage time and handling time at either end. It may vary from one to two months. The Australian Post Office asked for last year's Christmas mail to be in their hands by 15th December. With the ships available this meant we had to announce for the latest dates for posting for delivery by Christmas, the 18th October for New South Wales and Queensland and the 3rd November for elsewhere. It may be, therefore, that the cards were posted too late. However, if the hon. and gallant Member will let me know to what addresses his cards were posted I shall be glad to make further inquiries.