mapeasnneneemetnnnenensans tinea

B.C.

Telephone

THIS WEEK

Win back Canada’s
Constitution

*«
U.S. Congo plot will fail

*«
WA can move ahead

—PAGE 7

—PAGE 12

Interim transit
boost blocked

oye, Posed interim transit fare
4log — of five cents a ride was
the @ this week, due largely to
ot Ra °rts of the Central Council
Harpy payers and its president,
fey, Rankin, The boost was
to Hydro by the Public

Commission, acting
h fen commendation from the
Mitye. cities of Greater Van-

and Greater Victoria,

Udo) Ities

Rani;
“aad threatened to obtain a
lie, ‘“Miunction prohibiting any

other civic leaders on Hydro’s
attempt to gouge the public wes
promptly condemned by William
Stewart, Vancouver secretary of
the Communist Party.

“since the Hydro first applied
for its transit increase, our party
has sought to mobilize the widest
possible united front around the
slogan ‘No Fare Hike,’” Stewart
said, “We have continually
warned that people like Rathie
could not be relied upon to fight

BY THE EDITORS

AT LAST OTTAWA HAS BEEN
FORCED TO ACT! This week the Board
of Transport Commissioners 1n Ottawa or-
dered an “extensive investigation into es
huge profits of the B.C. Telephone an
Bell Telephone Companies.

The cautiously-worded eeu re
d in Ottawa said, “It would appear to
pean the public interest that the board
should hold a review by way of public
hearings”, into the operations of these two

companies.

ouncement said that the
ee See intend to inquire into the
rates charged by the utility companies,
but it adds that “existing rates or an
vision thereof that may be requeste iB
consequence of the board’s finding will be

7
reviewed later if necessary.

B.C. public will welcome the an-
ak it a hearing will be held
and that it will be open to the public.
This decision is long overdue. For some
years there has been growing protest
among phone users that the B. C. Tele-
phone Company was gouging the public.

This notorious monopoly, which is in-
directly controlled by the giant U.S. Gen-
eral Telephone and Electronics Corpora-
tion, has phone users 1 B.C. completely
at its mercy. With 94 percent of all tele-
phones in B.C. controlled by B. C. Tele-
phone it has been able to impose the high-

est rates in Canada.
This profit - hungry company has

i i i its monop-
ssed gigantic profits from its n
a edi of a vital utility. Earnings on

B.C. Telephone Company shares jumped

PHONE PROBE WON
BY PUBLIC PROTEST

profits to be aired

from $1.72 to $3.31 between 1958 to 1963,
almost double! The company’s net profit
for the first six months of 1964 was $5,-
402,512—which isa 10 percent increase
over the same six month period in 1963!

The Pacific Tribune on March 27 of

this year devoted most of its front page to
an exposure of this insiduous and _ anti-

public monopoly. Below we reprint that

front page. We are proud of the part we

played in helping to bring the present
probe about .We share with the New De-

mocratic Party, the Communist Party
and various public organizations the cre-

dit for forcing Ottawa to act.

Indications from Ottawa are that the

hearings will take place next year. The
B.C. Telephone probe will follow after the

hearings on the Bell Telephone Company.
Ottawa should be urged not to drag the
proceedings out too long. If they are going
to hold long drawn-out proceedings the
Board of Transport Commissioners should
order an immediate interim cut in phone
rates. Otherwise the utility-using public
will continue to be gouged by the present
high rates.

Meanwhile, the people in B.C. should
insist that municipal governments and

rovincial governments prepare to go be-
ore the hearings in Ottawa with strong

presentations urging Federal action to
protect the public from this hungry mon-
opoly. Labor, and other organizations
should be urged to do likewise.

Regardless, however, of what the out-
come may be of the Ottawa hearings the
demand will continue to grow in B.C. that
action be taken in the near future to take
over this utility and place it under public
ownership.

PHONE MONOPOLY
FLEECES PUBLIC

B.C. pays highest rates in Canada

B.C. telephone users pay the highest rates in Canada to a mon-
opoly which controls 94 percent of all telephones in the province. This

Pacific

pany, B.C. Teleph
and last year showed a net profit of $10.9 million, a 15 percent gain
over 1962. Despite numerous demands that this utility company be
placed under public ownership, the Socred government continues to
protect this i

is controlled by U.S. telephone corporations

poly.

vi
FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 1964

The operationg of this giant
utility company was recently ex-
posed in two articles carried
in ‘The Fisherman,” by labor
researcher and writer BenSwan-
key.

in B.C. are so high,” asksSwan-
key, when the telephone industry
is classified as a public utility
and comes under the jurisdiction
of the federal board of trans-
port?

Rate increases. can only be

made with the agreement of the
Board of Transport Commission-
ers whicl! is supposed to prot:
ect the interests of the public,

High profits

Swankey shows howa telephone

hea 8° before the close of PUC
Vig; NES, on the grounds no re-
Nate ©ould be made or contem-_
Pres. “SS all the facts had been

F , ‘s in- so Comparing the rates in B.C.
consistently for the people t VOL. 25, NO. 13 > 10¢ Sie pier area panies
terests and Rathie has borne ou . 25, ile

our worst fears.” Hold Columbia hearings vis si perar ne esaon
in B.C., urged in wire

system, the rate is $3.75 amonth
for a house phone and $10 for a

a business phone. With these low US-owned
s Ag As matters now stand on the 2 rates, the city still makes $1 7 monopoly can artificially inflate
_ indi ations A demand that hearings on he had heard from 35 organiza- mijiion a year profit from its itxlisbatan te aehe anita crake
« PUC hearings, all indic Girimbia River treaty by tions which wanted to present teterhone system. company of profit and how this is done
i. ° Qr y be : continued for the Saernal Affairs Committee evidence before the hearings. | pie = ten ceca iBiareiagteasent
q ant 2 i i i - i t ein < th " - < 5 in Vancouver, the rate is Compiled.
lf. t an interim increase point to their & iw parliament be held on the — ReidScott, NDPMPfromTor- ¢¢ 5° tor a house phone and charges SOA car ume,

Pacific Coast wasmadethisweek onto suggested that sittings of
in a wire to the Committee’S Committee be held in Vancouver.
chairman by the Columbla for je was supported by Dr. Law-
Canada Committee inVancouver- rence Kindt, Alberta Conserva-
‘The 35-member External Af- tive, who said that ‘perhaps in
faire Committee 1s expected © May" the Committee should go
open its hearings early in April out to B.C. to “inspect the sit-
gh the treaty. Procedureannoun- yation on the ground,””
ced from the organization meet~

some time—at least until the
municipal elections in December,
and possibly later still, This un-
doubtedly means the whole future
of transit costs and services will
occupy the centre of the election

$17.10 for a business phone. In-
stallation fees are $10 and $6
respectively. Long distance rates
in B,C, are excessively high and

B.C. Telephone is controlled by
Anglo Canadian Telephone which
is owned by Associated Telephone 7
and Telegraph. Associated inturn |
is owned by General Telephone |
and Electronics. All of these are
U.S, corporations,

4«B.C. Telephone buys its sup-
plies and services from Automa-
tic Electric, Dominion Direct-
ories and Canadian (B.C.) Tele-
phones and Supplies.

“Now it just happens that the

Nd. Pes would be analogous to a
Mu areing a jury, and a jury
tj, 8 a verdict, before the
Rip, wc’ had been submitted,”
tee "N charged, His statement
Ney. Yed wide coverage in all
8tea Media and was generally
Si, 1 With enthusiastic re-
ate from many divergent
Ctions,

all traffic

have no relation to distance or will bear
actual costs, A call from Van-
couver to Dawson Creekis $3.25,
: ye the Same Price as a call to Cal-
: Meanwhile, in Vancouver this gary, A call toFernie costs $2.85
| dng of the ewes oes tet week the United Fishermen and der pi Beiter ae $3:,You'cax Us

indicated that federal aaa to. Allied Worker's Union, meet- all the way to Halifax. It costs

tatives from ifterested Pp Ing in convention, decidedtopre- you $2,70to phone Prince George.

B.C. and Sask- =
Laierenes followed by sent its opposition to the treaty Por twice that amount — $5.35—

FRONT PAGE OF THE PACIFIC TRIBUNE ON MARCH 27, 1964, WHICH EXPOS-

ED THE HUGE PROFITS OF THE U.S.-OWNED MONOPOLY AND SPEARHEADED THE
PUBLIC FIGHT FOR FEDERAL ACTION. a
sf

stage,

atchew:

Hydro’s entire case for a boost
in fares — its alleged transit
losses—and the narrow terms of
reference granted the PUC to

See INTERIM, Pg. 3

Me,
\., *2While, the vacillation of
Mayor

“ouver Rathie and