TARIFF REVISION

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 30, 6 February 1933, Page 6

TARIFF REVISION

(To the Editor.) Sir, —On Saturday evening you published a letter from "N.Z." advocating a drastic reduction of duty on imports from Great Britain. Your correspondent added that "more generous treatment of United Kingdom manufacturers is long overdue." I'would ask your correspondent whether the following are facts:— • 1. More than half our imports of manufactures from Britain are already admitted duty free. 2. The preference on dutiable imports from Britain given by New Zealand is very considerably higher than that given by any other Dominion. 3. The preference given to British manufacturers (over foreigners) is higher toY day in New Zealand than it is in Britain itself.—l am, etc., i . . ALISON GREY. (To the Editor.) j Sir, —Your correspondent, "N.Z.," suggests that the. Government should follow up its inflation of exchange by making "drastic reductions in. Customs duties on imports from the United • Kingdom." That would certainly be very nice for importers—or, in other words, "dealers." But it would not be quite so pleasant for the scores of thousands of New Zealand workers who would be thrown out of employ-1 ment—driven to swell the 70,000 now -unemployed—if our New Zealand manufac-i tunng industries were handicapped on the one hand by having to pay 25 per cent more (exchange) for all imported plant and materials, .while on the other hand they would have their.present reasonable protection (the-smallest measure of pro-1 tection granted to any industries anywhere in the Empire) still farther reduced? It would knock them out iB^W >?- Z-V 0, eS / ot Eeem t0 Valise £> i a tT .Zealan< * ■workers in New Zealand factories^ are producing wealthreal wealth-for the people of New Zealand. Moreover, they are.earning their own livelihood arid supporting their own WW m 3^ 0 c sawificed-and f" oth, ef £o'°ooa dded to the tmemployed- |° r*he benefit of indent agents who are not producers at all, but only middlemen' —J. am, etc.,