tea-and-sugar, adj. — Green’s Dictionary of Slang

tea-and-sugar adj.

(Aus.) insignificant.

1907		Sun. Times (Perth) 2 June 4/7: The neighboring small fry cockies were staggered to see a quartette of tea-and-sugar actor-r-r-rs firing blank cartridges at mobs of supers.
1916		Sun. Times (Perth) 25 June 6s/8: One of the ‘mice’ (tea-and-sugar bushrangers) living a furtive life in a Perth coffee palace had sneaked a pair of shoes.

In compounds

tea and sugar bandit (n.) [the smallness of the objects that are stolen]

a petty thief.

1967		‘Whisper All Aussie Dict.’ in Kings Cross Whisper (Sydney) xli 4/2: tea and sugar bandit: A petty thief. Usually the type of person who is too lazy to work and too frightened to steal large quantities of other peoples’ goods.
1983		R. Aven-Bray Ridgey-Didge Oz Jack Lang 49: Tea and Sugar Bandit Small time criminal.

tea and sugar burglar (n.) [the fig. ‘theft’ of the commodities, which are more likely offered free]

(Aus.) a vagrant; thus tea and sugar burglaring n., travelling as a vagrant.

1899		H. Lawson ‘“A Rough Shed”’ in Roderick (1972) 463: Could I explain that I ‘jabbed trotters’ and was a ‘tea-and-sugar burglar’ between sheds.
1901		H. Lawson ‘The Romance of the Swag’ in Roderick (1972) 501: Travelling with the swag in Australia is variously and picturesquely described as ‘humping bluey’, ‘walking Matilda’, ‘humping Matilda’, ‘humping your drum’, ‘being on the wallaby’, ‘jabbing trotters’, and ‘tea and sugar burglaring.’.

tea and sugar man (n.)

(UK tramp) a casual labourer, who works for as long as it takes him to supply himself with his basic needs, before moving on.

1932

M. Marshall Travels of Tramp-Royal 177: ‘Any work up-by, chum?’ [...] ‘None at all,’ I replied. ‘Things are as bad as they can be. No tea-and-sugar men need apply.’.