ACR Classics: The End Of Australia’s Dual Currency
- By John Gartner
Out with the old…in with the new.
The end of Australia’s dual currency period has been signalled officially by a Proclamation under the Currency Act 1965, which appears in the Commonwealth Gazette of 8 June 1967.
The Proclamation means that, as from 1 August, businesses in Australia will be solely in $c. This includes all contracts and agreements, deeds, instruments and legal documents, payments, sales and other monetary transactions.
£sd will have no legal standing. A contract made out in £sd will not be enforceable.
All retailing must be in $c. All Australian shops will be operating in $c from 1 August and it will be unnecessary for any retailer to advertise or quote in £sd. At present some retailers still deal in £sd, as both $c and £sd are legal currencies. In addition, a relatively few shops have not yet had their business machines (mainly cash registers and accounting machines) converted to $c operation. These factors will not apply after 1 August.
Complaints to the Board
The most persistent complaint reaching the Decimal Currency Board concerns organisations and salesmen who still talk £sd throughout a transaction and then $c when they ask for payment.
Members of the public have protested to the Board that they have not been given the ‘real price’ of an article until after they have bought it, when the salesman suddenly switches from £sd to $c.
It is quite likely that there will be a rising public demand for official action to curb the use of £sd if organisations persist with it after 1 August. If retailers, estate agents, and car salesmen can see such a possibility they would surely be wise to avoid it, if only from the viewpoint of customer relations.
Any organisation still advertising and selling in £sd should take steps, now, to phase out such practices as dual-pricing and promoting in £sd.
The effect of the proclamation
From 1 August 1967, $c will be Australia’s sole legal currency, and all financial transactions must be in $c. An existing contract in £sd need not be re-written in $c, however, as all £sd amounts in contracts made before 1 August will be taken to mean corresponding amounts in $c.
If an amount of £sd is payable before 1 August, but payment is not made until after that date, the payment must be in $c.
The Proclamation does not amend the legal tender provisions. £sd notes and coins will retain their values, expressed in $c. A 2c coin will continue… Click here to access this article and thousands more for less than $2/week.
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