The Dominion TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 1923. THE EMPIRE DEVELOPMENT UNION

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 156, 20 March 1923, Page 6

The Dominion TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 1923. THE EMPIRE DEVELOPMENT UNION

All who have given any thought to, lm P cri “\ aware of the necessity, amongst other things, 0 Kmnire in matters sured contact between the,different countries 0 t endZ y to of economic nolicv. At present there is an unfortunate tendency o formulate admirable proposals and then leave them on paper, oi a th ° ThSeHctetespired the formation in Great Britain of the Empire DevelXnt S an organisation which hasl as president Viscount Long, a former Secretary of State foi actual adoption of the Empire Development Union is to P ress /X„lnted to Lnefi? th” of concrete schemes of economic organisation < >■ . , various countries of the Empire, individua yan - , • The British organisation does not propose to undeitake. ttefor mation of branches in the Dominions, but its promote! s have in m d that spontaneous action on the part of the Dominions in this direction W ° Ul l d n lead given in the United already, being followed. The formation of a Commonwealth branch of the Empire Development Union was decided upon at a h^ ld Sydney last week, and attended by representatives, of most of the prominent commercial and primary producers organisa Similar action in t£is country appears to be on every ground de sirable Realising its possibilities and assuming always that it m adequately supported, the Empire Development Union should provi e a link that is very badly needed. 1 . the As its objects are delined in Great Britain and in A " st^ ia ’ union will concern itself largely with the improvement of 1 facilities within the Empire and the proper marketing of S questions and others have been discussed at successive mp a C ferences, as yet with little practical result With the ImpeC™ ferenco meeting at infrequent and somewhat uncertain internals th is an obvious danger that the neglect of practical measures to foster Empire trade and development may continue indefinitely. The scope of useful effort open to the Empire Development Union is correspondingly great. Its essential objects are to open up wider markets in the overseas Empire for British exports, and to establish conditions in which Britain will obtain from Empire countries an creasing proportion of its imported food and raw ma cua s. Well-directed effort along these lines undoubtedly offers the various countries of the Empire their most hopeful means of getting back. o normal prosperity. Precisely to what extent trade within the Upue is capable of compensating the United Kingdom for the loss of European and other markets time and working experience must show. It is manifest that if the Mother Country relied mainly upon the recovery of her former markets her progress in overcoming existing troubles oi unemployment and trade depression would be at best painfully s ow. An intensive development of inter-imperial trade, going hand i hand with the investment of British capital and the settlement of surplus British population in the Dominions, undoubtedly will help very materially to hasten the process of’ economic recovery in the United Kingdom. For the Dominions this recovery of course means improving conditions in their best market. The Empire Development Uniop has been created to concentrate attention on these vital common interests and upon practical measures by which they may be served. Producers and all other sections of the population should be able to agree that no time should be lost in setting up a branch of the organisation in New Zealand. With the union established and supported as it should be here and in other parts of tho Empire, a' promising step would be taken towards the development of a more enlightened outlook than is implied in the present tion of Imperial affairs to the exigencies of local politics. )