Grant of Assisted Passages to be Suspendend London, Nov. 13.
The Under-Secretary of State for! the Dominions, -Mr. Ponsonby, announced in the House of Commons: to-day that a telegram had been received from the Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Austral stating that it had been decided suspend for the present the grant of assisted passages to Australia.
Mr. Ponsonby said he had received no communication on the subject. from any of the State Governments, but he pointed out that, under arrangements up to the present in force, the grant of assisted passages was a matter for the Commonwealth and not for the State Governments.
Mr. Ponsonby added: "I am satisfied that all parts of the British Empire Overseas are sympathetic to migration from this country, but the respective Governments. must necessarily reserve their rights to control the movement of assisted migrants in accordance with local' economic conditions."
The question of the suitability of various parts of Empire for miura. tion from this country, added Mr. Ponsonby, depends on many factors ich cannot be discussed within the limits of an answer to a Parliamentary question.—British Wireless through Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.