THE MEAT TRADE

Evening Post, Issue 2, 2 July 1932, Page 22

THE MEAT TRADE

QUOTAS AND TARIFFS

VESTEY ENTERS FRAY

(From "The Post's" Representative.) ... : .LONDONy 13th May..

Since the memorandum prepared by organisations associated with Empire meat trade was published Sir Edward Vestey.has.been very busy distributing matter for publication as a counterblast.-; The memorandum, it will be re-^ membered, aims at rationing the import of foreign meat, and also using tariffs as a: lever for encouraging the reciprocal trade that we might obtain, for ..instance, from the Argentine. ."Sir Edmund has Issu'etf a 3,0-page open message" to the members of the Housevpf'Commons. - The statement is headed "Ottawa and Imperial Preference. A grave outlook for British Food Prices.'V The purpose of the pamphlet is to T"show members of Parliament that-the interests;of Britain are m grave danger, of being jeopardised at Ottawa by endeavours ; of Dominion and-Home for their own benefit, \vithput: any consideration for the" real interests of .'this country, tb secure, the control of Britain's supplies of imported' meat, by means of quotas or prohibitive tariffs." -

'Those of-us : who are behind the scenes," ; writes Sir Edmund, "can see that the ground at Ottawa is being prepared with the main object of taking unfair advantage, of the patriotism of the British consumer. ~

"We are .beginning to see the danger of., which Free Traders have so often warned us—that with the scramble of the Dominions to secure the highest possible prices for the .foodstuffs they sell to the British people, and of Britain to divert manufactures from Dominion factories'.■-.'lmperial prefcrenco'l- 'may easily; shipwreck the British Conimonwealtli' instead; of binding its components more closely together by mutually advantageous economic exchanges in the' manner so long and loudly proclaimed 'by a \certain Conservative faction." ■ ■;;- : ;;

Sir Edmund ;Vestey ;maintains: that a . disastrous rise in :.the price of: meat and a great; variety of other essential foodstuffs must follow in this country. He asserts that "the hotels of Ottawa will be thronged with opportunist advocate,!} of the interests of Dominion producers at -the expense pf the British people."-;;: -; ... ~ ■ v-1- - ' ' :

The '"News: Chronicle," being a Free Trade, journal, takes the pamphlet very seriously,-but other'newspapers- do not. Tn the.-'cprrespondenee columns: of "The: a :Tirhes" the Australian - High Commissioner and Sir Edmund are engaged in;-a controversy. In one letter Sir, Edmund says :;— ' ~ " ; • '■■

".rriasmuch.as'.tlie subject under discussion Is our trade .with the Dominions and; not foreign 'countries,;it. seems to me both relevant and permissible to cite. the absurd disproportion.- between the .purchases of '.another Dominion— New. Zealand—who during' the last three: years purchased £82,000,000 "less from England.' than England' 'purchased from. her. .... V ' ■'■■■' ':'

■ "So far as foreign countries" are concerned, we are now armed with tariffs .with which to bargain for a fair share of their trade. My' point is that, although ■certain Doniiuimis depend for their Very existence upon our coiitinu-' ing to buy their ..product's, they obviously , import from foreign countries' vast .quantities of goods that they could have purchased from-'us at perhaps slightly greater . cost; yet they attempt to justify prohibitive tariffs against:- our. manufactures on the grounds of temporary financial exigency and seek to secure at Ottawa quotas and tariffs that woulc] give them a gratuitous, monopoly-of 'our supplies -of meat, "butter, ; oranges, '- grapefruit, apples, and bananas." .

Carrying out the laws of the ITnited States of America.costs the equivalent of 3s 6d per head of the total population.