The Dominion WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1932. OUR CASE AT OTTAWA IN FULL

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 294, 7 September 1932, Page 8

The Dominion WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1932. OUR CASE AT OTTAWA IN FULL

Farmers in particular and'die public in genera! should give Mr Coates’s statement. It was drawn up with wide perspective, taking th - WO back a se^kTyears n SasS foi * theSaindeliberations of the Conference on its particular SUbj Tn'his statement Mr. Coates dealt mainly in facts. Certainly he draws certain conclusions from them and on these bases the pr - nosals made to Britain. Generally, however, the statement is ad soassionate survey of the British meat market, its sources of suPP. 1 /- the proportions Y of different countries, the percentage of Empire produced and foreign, the enormous increase under certain heads in recenTyears, and the consequent effect on prices. Here is a balanced and reasoned argument, supported by evidence, and not the caieles vapourings of a propagandist. As such the statement is impressive. With these facts as a basis it is easy to understand why th Dominions’ delegates strove so earnestly for the restriction in quantity of foreign imports. Early in the statement there is the assertion. It is useless to set up a form of alleged protection which will not secure flip desired result. . . • Protection can only be secured by quanti tative restriction of foreign supplies.” This proposition is then supported by a study in detail of the various markets and their reactions one uponanother, and therefore upon the returns of Empire producers. No one can read the statement without being impressed by the tacts brought in support of the argument. If immediate results only are considered, if Britain had to consider the Dominions interests alone and had no concern for her own consumers, or her trade, or her foreign customers, then the case would have been unanswerable. But there are other questions such as, for instance, whether the conditions causing the existing glut in British markets will persist much longer and, therefore, whether a policy .designed to give immediate relief should not be examined as to its ultimate effects. , XT Those questions may be left unanswered now. With New Zealand’s case before it—and Mr. Coates has presented it thoroughly the country can judge better of the course of events at Ottawa and appreciate the reasons impelling Australia and New Zealand to press for restrictions on British imports of foreign meat.