Chapter 332: Chapter 289: Revenue Breaks Through Sixty Million

The Foreign Affairs Department has already made a request to the Chilean Government, stating that the super battleship the Chileans demanded has already been designed. They invited the Chileans to come to Australasia for an on-site inspection and to sign a formal warship purchase order.

However, Chile is located on the east coast of the Pacific Ocean, separated from Australasia by the entire South Pacific Ocean.

The arrival of the Chileans will still take some time, and before the Chileans arrive, Arthur also welcomes the end of 1910.

On December 31st, 1910, the annual report meeting of the Cabinet Government formally convened at Sydney Palace.

This year’s Cabinet Government summary report meeting has become more important than last year’s. Apart from the European situation becoming more serious, the Cabinet Government is also about to welcome a new round of elections next year.

This will be the first election after the cabinet reform, and many old-time cabinet ministers will also face an important choice in their political careers.

The maximum term of office for Cabinet Ministers is three terms. This means that if these Cabinet Ministers want to continue to stay in the Cabinet Government, they must aim for different positions.

In addition to the Prime Minister and the Minister of State, which are the highest points in the Cabinet Government, the Chief Justice, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Royal Affairs Minister are also important positions that can allow them to continue to stay in the Cabinet Government.

However, the competition for these positions is extremely high, especially for the Minister of State, Chief Justice, and Royal Affairs Minister. Elections for these roles can only be held under Arthur’s nomination.

This means that if Arthur is not optimistic about them, then they can only work towards the positions of Prime Minister and Speaker of the House of Representatives.

However, in addition to the other Cabinet Ministers, competitors for these two positions include incumbent Prime Minister Walter, former Prime Minister Evan, and incumbent Secretary of State Kent.

In addition to the five senior ministers of the Cabinet Government, there may be more than ten competitors for the two positions, and all of them are top-tier politicians who have served as cabinet members. This is a huge pressure for these cabinet ministers.

Therefore, these cabinet ministers view the annual summary report meeting at the end of this year as extremely important. This is their last chance to showcase their political achievements, and the last chance to gain Arthur’s trust and get him to think highly of them.

The atmosphere at the large conference table in the palace has become very serious.

Prime Minister Walter stood solemnly and respectfully in front of the conference table and was the first to speak: “Your Majesty, colleagues, please allow me to start the annual summary report of the Australasian Cabinet Government in 1910. The first item to report is the overall domestic situation. During the entire 1910, our developmental situation was good, with orderly and intense development in all aspects.”

After a series of reports from the Cabinet officials, the current situation of Australasia was finally reported in detail.

First is the population issue that Arthur values most. By the end of 1910, the total population of Australasia had exceeded 9 million, with the exact number being over 9.43 million. Compared to the previous year, the population increased by 910,000, among which the number of immigrants exceeded 850,000, the number of newborns exceeded 100,000, and the number of deaths was over 40,000.

As the core of the country, the population of the Australian region has already exceeded 7.54 million, and the population of the New Zealand region has already broken through 1.81 million.

The population of the two colonies, New Guinea and Timor, has also broken through 60,000 and 20,000 respectively, with an overall healthy population growth.

In terms of population structure, British immigrants have declined slightly, but still maintained 68.1% of the total population.

For the first time, the Russian population has surpassed the German population, reaching 14.4%. The German population has dropped to third, accounting for 13.9% of the total population.

With Russia’s increase in immigration to Australasia, the proportion of Russian immigrants should continue to rise.

However, Arthur’s baseline for British immigrant proportion is 65%. If the proportion of British immigrants falls below 65%, then Arthur would consider reducing the quantity of immigrants from other countries. After all, the stability of the nation is far more important than population growth.

Currently, the development of Melbourne is also very rapid, with the population reaching over 950,000 by the end of this year.

If nothing happens, the population of Melbourne should exceed 1 million within 1911, thus becoming the second city in Australasia with a population of over a million.

However, the bad news is that in the short term, the only cities in Australasia with a population over a million will be these two. The cities currently ranked third and fourth in population are Wellington and Newcastle, with populations exceeding 470,000 and 450,000 respectively.

These two cities are still a long way from having a population of a million, even after the end of World War I.

However, for a country like Australasia with a population of less than 10 million, having too many cities with a population exceeding a million may actually be detrimental to the development of the country.

After all, Australasia has a vast land of millions of square kilometers. If most of the population is concentrated in certain cities, then the development of other regions is bound to be limited.

Due to the construction of the Leonora Industrial Base, West Australia has also become a major region for the Australasian Government to dispatch immigrants.

The population of West Australia has now exceeded one million, and the constraints on industrial development are not so great anymore.

Speaking of industrial development, the completion of the construction of the Leonora Industrial Base and the attraction of factories to move in and officially start production, have brought a better development stage for all industries in Australasia.

The scale of steel production in Australasia has also seen a substantial increase, with an annual output of 2.1132 million tons of iron and 1.4005 million tons of steel.

In the chemical industry, the Leonora Industrial Base has attracted more than ten chemical factories, two agricultural machinery factories, one synthetic ammonia factory, two small fertilizer factories, 17 civilian factories and so on, producing agricultural machinery, fertilizers, and various chemical products. It has made a significant contribution to various developmental constructions in Australasia.

More than a dozen factories, large and small, at the Leonora Industrial Base have created over 1,000 job opportunities, driving significant economic development in the region of West Australia.

The per capita income of Australasia has now reached 48.7 Australasian dollars, and the per capita income of some parts of Australasia has exceeded 50 Australasian dollars.

The construction of the two colonies is also almost on track. The per capita annual income of the New Guinea Colony’s total population of 60,000 is 41 Australasian dollars, while the per-capita income of the Australian Timor with a population of 20,000 is 40 Australasian dollars.

By theory, the income of the colonies should not lag behind that of the native land. However, as the colonies continue to experience an influx of immigrants, these immigrants will have relatively low income in the short term, thereby reducing the overall per capita annual income of the colonies.

Of course, the government’s total fiscal revenue has also seen substantial growth. Thanks to the disaster in East Asia in 1910, Australasia made a decent profit in grain exports.

Plus, with considerable aid from Britain, the finance of Australasia was also revitalized.

In the entire year of 1910, the total fiscal revenue of the government was 64.17 million Australian dollars, which increased nearly 10 million Australian dollars compared to the previous year.

Of course, if you do not count the extra profits from exporting grain to East Asia, the increase in total fiscal revenue is about the same as last year, probably around 8 million Australian dollars.

Of course, with the increase in fiscal revenue, the government’s spending has also seen a considerable rise.

In the entire year of 1910, the total fiscal expenditure of the government was as high as 57 million Australian dollars, an increase of 8 million Australian dollars compared to last year.

Among them, military investment exceeded 20 million Australian dollars for the first time, specifically 21.35 million Australian dollars.

From this year onwards, the scale of the Australasian navy will reach three battleships, two battlecruisers, more than ten guards and destroyers, two submarines, and over 20 small patrol boats, etc.

Although the strength of the navy has significantly increased, the rise in its expenditure is also substantial, leading to a continuous increase in Australia’s military expenditure.

However, the good news is that the government is still in a surplus situation, although the surplus is only about 7 million Australian dollars. But, after all, sustaining a navy of major power level with a population of less than 10 million and still achieving surplus is already pretty amazing.

The special funds for the royal family also increased from last year’s 542,500 Australian dollars to 641,700 Australian dollars. The special funds for the royal family are gradually growing with the development of the Australasian economy.

This can also be considered as a small benefit Arthur left for his descendants. In the future, when Australasia is developed, it is perfectly fine for the special funds of the royal family to grow to millions or even tens of millions of Australian dollars.

If the royal financial group is not well managed in the future, it can still rely on the funds obtained from the government each year to maintain a noble and luxurious life for all members of the royal family. At least being a rich man will not be a problem.

This is also Arthur’s vision. Arthur spares no effort in cultivating the next generation and successors. However, if the successor’s ability is not very good in the future, Arthur will consider reducing royal power and pushing Australasia to a constitutional monarchy if he does not think he can control the entire country.

This approach can also ease the contradiction between the monarchy and the government. It might be difficult for the future monarchs to be conquerors, but with the royal financial group, being a steward should not be a problem.

At worst, they can stay on this piece of land in Australasia, live a luxurious and ordinary life.

The more power, the more responsibilities. A despot without abilities could plunge the entire royal family into the abyss.

Thanks to the fiscal surplus, the Australasian government’s available funds have reached 240 million Australian dollars, and the funds are getting more and more.

This is very beneficial for future large-scale expansion of Australasia in the navy or other areas. After all, having adequate funds makes things easier and provides some protection against the huge consumption of war.

On the agricultural side, it continued to maintain the same level as last year, with a slight increase in per capita cultivated land area. If last year’s per capita cultivated land area was around 2.28 acres, then this year’s per capita cultivated area officially exceeded 2.3 acres. Of course, it is only about 2.3 acres.