IMPERIAL PREFERENCE.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18243, 29 November 1924, Page 12

IMPERIAL PREFERENCE.

MR MASSEY'S MEW. DOMINIONS DEPEND ON BRITISH PROSPERITY. (SrECIiX. TO "THE PEE3S.") AUCKLAND. November 28. In the course of an interview to-night the Prime Minister said: —

I am very glad to eeo that the now Government in Britain intend to give Parliament an opportunity of reconsidering the Preference proposals tfiat were agreed to in the first instance at the Imperial Economic Conference. It is just as well to remember that tho proposals which wero dealt with at the Conference did not, 'by a very long way, involve the whole principle of Empire preference. I believe that will come in time, but the British people are not quite ready for it yet, and we must bo satisfied to go quietly and let the British public see that JUmpiro preference will bo as good for them as for the cifczens of tho Overseas Dominions •U'ter outlining some of the Conference's decisions, particularly in regard to dried fruits, ikr Massey said: There seems to be an idea prevalent throughout the Umpire that if friendly relations are established between Franco and Germany prosperity will be restored to Britain/ Personally I am very doubtful of it. It would be a splondid thing if the European nations could settle down to prolonged peaces —and they ma y —i )U t we must take human nature as we find it. Sixty or seventy years ago Britain was the leading industrial country of the world. Its manufactured goods were in every port. But that is not the caso to-day. Every other country is manufacturing for itself, and in somo instances actually sending its surplus products into Britain —certainly into Britisli ports—while many hundreds of thousands of British workmen aro on the unemployed list or drawing that wretchedly humiliating and demoralising thing called tho dole. The outlook is very far from satisfactory, and with Germany coming into competition with Britain in industrial matters, as sho undoubtedly will, the prospect is far from reassuring. This is where we come inj for if there is depression in Britain, as there is, the purchasing capacity of the British people must be affected. And Britain is our best customer. If Britain failed us as a market, I do not know where we should sell our products as well as we have been selling thorn for the last half-century or more. Many people think that wo could find a market in the East. I am not of that opinion. If Britain's industrial supremacy is to be restored, it musb be by peopling tho unoccupied spaces of what are called tho overseas countries of the Empire. Britain buys a very large proportion of her foodstuffs and raw material in foreign countries, such as America (North and South),- the Argentine, Denmark, and Holland, while Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa would carry many times their present population and produce all the food and raw material required by the population of Britain. And they would be a market, and a good one, for the manufactured products of the United Kingdom. One cannot help being anxious about the iuture of British industry when one notices the efforts that are being made to promote trade with' Russia, but at the, same time the efforts on the part of the British Dominions to increase their trade with the heart of the Emoire have met with little response. These things nil point to the necessity of an up-to-date and businesslike Empire policy being brought into operation. If not. we who denend unon the Britisli markets may find ourselves face to face with serious trouble. !

N.Z. AND CANADA. SUGGESTED ALTERATION IN OUR TARIFF. Ny cable—press association—copteight) (Australian and n.z. cable association.} (Kceivcd No'vcmber 28th, 9.10 p.m.) OTTAWA, November 27. While the Carf.dian Government is satisfied with the progress of negotiations concerning the change in the New Zealand tariff in regard to preference, certain manufacturers take occasion to deny the accuracy of the assertion that a majority of Canadian ahtomobile plants wohld be adveraelly affected by. tho 75 per cent. Canadian labour requirement. Manufacturers declare that eight makes off Canadian cars are able to meet the proposed conditions. The Government, however, replies that only one car would qualify undor strict adherence to the conditions, to which manufacturers retort that the remainder would likewiso qualify if they adopted this company's policy. •Nevertheless, New Zealand's proposal is generally regarded as extreme, but the opinion is expressed that a maximum of 50 per cent, would actually be beneficial to certain manufacturers. It is suggested this ratio would benefit tho paper and fish industries, while not imposing excessive hardship on other pursuits.

[Hitherto the New Zealand tariff has allowed preferential treatment on Canadian manufactures if one-quarter of their total value has been created by Canadian labour. New Zealand now is seeking to increase the proportion to three-quarters.]

BREAD FOR BRITAIN. ORGANISATION OF WHEAT SUPPLY URGED. (BY CABLE—HtSSS ASSOCIATION—COFZKIGHT) (AUSTRALIAN AND K.Z. CABLE ASSOCIATION.) (llcceivcd November 28th, 0.10 p.m.) LONDON, November 28. The British Empire Producers' Organisation adopted a rcsolhtion urging the Government to enquire and lis a minimum quotation for the country's annual wheat requirements which should be produced from the soil of the United Kiugdom. Wheat beyond that quota should be of Empire origin, and steps should be taken to organise Empire supplies.