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71. The contributions agreed were— Australia ... ... ... 30% France ... ... ... 12J% Netherlands ... ... ... 15% New Zealand ... ... ... 15% United Kingdom ... ... 15 % United States ... ... ... 12|% 72. The Finance Committee also made certain recommendations regarding general rules which should apply in connection with the control of the funds of the Commission. An important point of principle was decided at this juncture when it was agreed that salaries and allowances of Commissioners and their immediate staffs should be the responsibility of the Governments appointing them, and not a charge against the funds of the Commission. X.—COMMITTEE V : IMMEDIATE PROJECTS Chairman: Mr A. G. Osborne, M.P. {New Zealand) New Zealand Representatives Rt Hon. W. Nash Lieutenant-Colonel F. W. Voelcker Mr W. Tailby 73. Of all the Committees to which subject-matter was referred by the Plenary Session, Committee V, was, in many ways, the most interesting, since it dealt with the actual problems of the island territories of the South Pacific. 74. Discussions centred around the question of the over-all problems of the area in order that the Commission, when established, might have some practical suggestions to consider. 75. The Committee was composed of men with practical experience of the island territories of the South Pacific, including several active administrators. The New Zealand delegation was fortunate in being able to make use of the wide knowledge of the Administrator of Western Samoa, the Resident Commissioner of the Cook Islands, and the Secretary of Island Territories, all of whom could speak with authority on the problems not only of their own islands, but also of other island groups with which they were familiar. On many specific technical matters the Committee availed itself of the opportunity to hear a number of experts in such fields as health, agriculture, and education. 76 It was, however, fully realized that since the Committee was composed of laymen it was not competent to discuss in detail many of fhe involved technical questions which arose.