DOMINIONS AND PREFERENCE.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18100, 16 June 1924, Page 4

DOMINIONS AND PREFERENCE.

EMPIRE TRADE POLICY. (raoK ova ottjt cobmssojtdejt.) LONDON, May 6. , A round-table diseussion on the development of Empire trade, opened by Mr P. L.* McDongall, chief adviser to the Prime Minister of Australia, a; the recent Economic Conference, took place at last night's dinner of the Imperial Industries' Club, at -the Hyde Park Hotel. Sir James Allen, who presided, incidentally mentioned that this was the twenty-first anniversary of the foundation of the club. One of the objects of that meeting was to hare a round-table discussion on Empire trade. Mr McDongall, referring to the preference question, stated that during the war British jpaper makers lost the Australian market, and on their urgent representation the Australian Parliament granted a £3 per ton preference to British printing paper, with the result that • Australia became Britain's principal j market for paper. Now, owing to the unfortunate aftermath to the Imperial Economic Conference, Australia - would probably have to extend the British paper preference to Canada. Paper, cotton, woollens, and dyes well illustrated the deliberate shelter from foreign competliton given to British trade by Australia by granting preferences. At the p/esent time the preference given by Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, and the West Indies was many times as yalu able to the employment of British labour, skill, and capital, as the McKenna duties. What of the future? Would Britain encourage the Dominions to continue to shelter British | trade? Would she assist them to . help her to solve the great unemployj merit problem ', by taking migrants for j the produce of whose hands Britaiu would find a market! The answer to these questions depended upon the way I in which Empire policy was put before j the people of this country. Britain i was intensely proud of tie British t Commonwealth of free peoples. If ' Empire development was to be safe in' the hands of Britfsh democracy it was essential that it should be made clear that Imperial policy was never imperious, and that no one aimed at a self-contained Empire; that the ideals of the Empires of Spain, or Portgual, with their prohibitions of trade to al! foreigners, were dead, ind could never be revived; and that we did not even mean to follow the 100 per cent, discriminations against foreigners that the United States of America and Japan now employed an their dependenSir Joseph Cook said Australia and New Zealand took up this position—they begged for nothing; they could and wotfd look after themselves, a* they were well able to do, but they were conscious that it was not ia the interests of the Empire that they should have to betake themselves to tho-couwe that now remained open to thorn. They felt that if thm Empire wta good enough to tight for and make Morifon to'/l* w »» a? 0 '! «°*, t0 irvlo wiHl.. It Gwnt Britam ww going i.o mud! manors to the oxtnmt and w»y Mm fwmluionn were to bo treated us a»y wtsldW w«» iwatefl, It would hn iu',r*(i for her than it would bn tot Mm. 'l : rM4l» Wight go to. Aiawlca and

"1 Japan, which were much nearer Australia than was Great Britain of Board of Trade. Immediately following the . visit of the King and Queen to the British Industries Fair at the White City yesterday a distinguished company, including representatives of the Dominions, aid almost every foreign nation, was entertained at luncheon by the Government. Mr Sidney Webb, the President of the Board of Trade, presided. Sir James Allen was present. Mr Webb said it was the business of the Board of Trade to promote in every way British industries.' Sometimes the Board was apt to be looked upon too much as a policeman. He alluded to the many complaints which were made to the effect that British manufacturers were finding themselves undersold by foreigners, and that their tenders were not accepted. He reminded them that last year the export of British goods to other countries in the faee of the fiercest competition amounted to nearly £300,000,000, and advised them that it was better; to lay stress on the magnitude of the orders we had rather than on those we had not ° got. It was because the goods wero not going to the other shop, and .because he did not want them to go to the other shop, that he was so pleased .to propose success to British industries. Sir Adolph Tuck asked Mr Webb to convey to the Chancellor of the Exchequer tho request not only of the whole of the business community, but of the wholo country, that he should boldly revert to penny postage and halfpenny postage for postcards. Mt William Lunn, MJP. (Parliamentary Secretary of the Department of Overseas Trade) claimed that there had been no Government in this country which was more interested in and moro anxious to give encouragement and to render every assistance possible to the traders in "this country than the present Government. The Spanish Ambassador expressed admiration of the super-finance of the British Exchequer. The World War came, and its consequences had to be met, either at home or in helping less happy nations. Governments came and went, but the surplus flowed on for ever. Just as the Empire would not exist without British industries, so British - industries would not flourish without the British Empire. Sir James Allen said the Dominions wero only too willing to further any enterprise of that kind which would help British industry.