CANADIAN TARIFF

Evening Star, Issue 20592, 18 September 1930, Page 11

CANADIAN TARIFF

THE DUMPING CLAUSE AN AMENDMENT DEFEATED Pren Aeiociation—By Telegraph—Copyright. OTTAWA, September 16. The House of Commons on Tuesday night defeated an amendment by the former Prime Minister (Mr Mackenzie King)', proposing to read that day six months hence a Government. measure to amend the .Customs Act in respect of the dumping clause. The amendment was rejected by a majority of 54. The importation into Canada of goods from Russia, which is believed to apply particularly t° coal, may be stopped if, an amendment to the Customs Act moved by the Prime Minister (Mr R. B. Bennett) becomes law. It proposes, to prohibit the importation of goods* from any country which is not a party to the Treaty of Versailles. DUMPING DUTY , OTTAWA, September 17. The dumping duty in the tariff resolutions tabled in the House of Commons amount to 50. per .cent. . On importations from Australia under the trade treaty a special duty will not expeed 15 per cent, ad valorem. THE BUTTER HATE OPINION IN VANCOUVER. .. - VANCOUVER, September 17. (Received .September 18, at 1,30 a,m.) ' Mr‘Bennett is evidently anxious to lose no time in implementing his promises to the electors regarding butter, which was an issue at the elections, but there is a strong conviction here that butter will be placed on the 4- cent rate, leaving the producers’ organisations to whittle down their profits. There is ho’ doubt here that butter from outside will continue to enter Canada owing to its superior quality And the inability of Canadian dairymen .to' meet an all-the-year-round supply. ■ • MR FORBES AT OTTAWA NEW TRADE AGREEMENT : DISCUSSED. OTTAWA, September 17. (Received September 18, at 9.50 a.m.) Conversations looking toward the formation of a new trade agreement between Canada and New. Zealand are in prospect, following the arrival to-day of Mr Forbes (Prime Minister of New Zealand). Mr Forbes stated in an interview : “I have accepted the invitation oL the Canadian Government to enter into conversations with a view to the arrangement of a new agreement, and I am looking forward to meeting Mr Bennett and his colleagues.” Mr Forbcs is the guest of Lord Willingdon at Government House. NO WIDE DIVERGENCY V OTTAWA, September 17. (Received September 18, at 10.55 a.m.) Discrimination against any country is conspicuous by its* absence in the revision of the tariff schedules. Where the jutes are increased they are increased right across the board—the general,’ intermediate, and British preference tariffs. The increases, in the Aggregate, are slightly more in the general and intermediate lists than in the British preference, hut on the whole there is no wide divergency. MR MACKENZIE KING'S PROTEST AMENDMENT MOVED IN HOUSE. OTTAWA, September 17. (Received September 18, at 1.5 p.m.) As a' protest against the Government’s. tariff proposals, Mr Mackenzie King to-day moved an amendment to the motion to go, into committee of ways and means, stating: “ The House regrets that the Government has seen fit 'at a special session called to {deal only with unemployment proposals to submit great increases in Customs taxation on a wide range of commodities under circumstances which pre-clude-the House and the country from securing adequate information regarding'the proposals, and which prevent Parliament from discussing them. In -the opinion of this House the tremendous. increases in taxation proposed will not end unemployment, but will inevitably increase the cost of living, and will also increase the-cost of production in l the primary industries—agriculture, fishing, mining, and lumbering—thus .making it more difficult for the producers in these industries to meet world competition in marketing their products.” Speaking on the tariff proposals, Mr Mackenzie King said: <( 1 wish to protest in the. strongest language possible against the time at which the amendments to the Customs tariff have been brought down, and the circumstances under, which’ (hoy have been introduced. The Government was seeking expedition so that the members could go to the Imperial Conference. Common decency and courtesy alone would demand that any. changes in the tariff agaiqst Empire goods might be left over Until after the Imperial Conference.” The House to-day read a third time the Government measure to amend the Customs Act in respect to the dumping clause. TRADE WITH NEW ZEALAND MR FORBES EXPLAINS POSITION. OTTAWA, September 17. (Received September 18, at 12.10 p.m.) Mr Forbes, in an interview to-day, declared that an 8 cents per pound

duty on New Zealand butter would be prohibitive insofar as exportation to Canada was concerned. He hoped that an arrangement would bo reached whereby some adjustment would be achieved, but “ considering that the duty was put on just as we landed at Ottawa, the situation does not look too hopeful. New Zealand, however, stands prepared to discuss the matter.” The policy of New Zealand, said Mr Forbes, was to trade with those nations which traded with her. If such nations did not value New Zealand’s business then the dominion would have to look elsewhere, notably the United Kingdom. If prohibitive duties were imposed on imports from New Zealand, obviously such one-sided trade could not continue. New Zealand had to export her produce in order to pay for her imports. Twenty per cent, of the dominion’s butter export was sold in Canada. • Regarding the decision of New Zealand to withdraw the preference extended to Canadian automobiles, Mr Forbes declared that the Canadian manufacturer still had 15 per cent, preference over the United States. Mr Forbes met Mr Bennett and several Cabinet Ministers earlier in the day. .