BRITAIN AND THE I.T.O.

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25272, 26 August 1947, Page 7

BRITAIN AND THE I.T.O.

WARNING GIVEN AT GENEVA

(Rec. 10.30 p.m.) LONDON, Aug. 25. The Geneva correspondent of “The Times” says that when the Secretary of Overseas Trade (Mr J. Harold Wilson) gave the warning at Geneva that the United Kingdom would have to use the escape clauses in the newlyadopted International Trade Organisation charter, he said that the preparatory committee must face the position that its work would be in vain unless all governments and agencies concerned could solve the overriding problem of the balance of payments. It must also face the fact that methods might have to be used in the intervening months and years which might appear opposed to the principles of the charter. They would certainly have to assist their position by agreements with particular countries, not only to bring additional materials and food into their national ecoribmies to maintain increased production, but also to enable them to part with muchneeded goods to other countries, in order that goods even more urgently needed might come to them in return. In these methods, designed to meet short-term and urgent problems, the guiding principle must be that they did not establish permanently artificial channels of trade, which in the long run would defeat the principles of the charter. , _ It was important, Mr Wilson added, that the balance of payments should not bring discredit on the fundamental principles of non-discriminatory, multilateral trading by attempting to move too far and too fast in this difficult period, when many of the essential conditions for such a system had not yet been realised.