EMIGRATION

Greymouth Evening Star, 27 March 1922, Page 5

EMIGRATION

UNANIAIITY REQUIRED. . (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.

? ■ — 1 LONDON, March 24. ' The Australian Press Association , has interviewed various British Government authorities in reference to the forthcoming British Emigration ' Bill, providing for financial co-opera-tion from the Dominions under new t schemes of emigration and land settlement. The interviewer found a general concurrence of opinion that .‘he principal difficulty affecting Australia was a lack of unanimity amongst the political parties regarding immigration. . Whatever one party proposed the other t opposed. This particularly applied to ’ the Australian State Parliaments, who controlled the land, without which , land settlement is impracticable. The j Canadian Federal and Provincial Par- ’ liaments had favoured immigration for the past 20 years. New Zealand, it was stated, has been preponderatingly favourable to more immigration in recent years. Australia -was stated to be a conspicuous exception. Thp first essential to Imperia) co-operation in emigration was stated to be continuity of policy. This would be impossible unless all the parties in the Australian Parliaments agreed to co-oper-ate with the Imperia] Government, and are able to guarantee 9. policy of continuity, because emigration should be a non-party question. If «he Australian State and Federal Parliaments treated immigration as a non-party, ; but as a national question, thereby enlisting the support of al] parties and also ensuring a continuity policy independent of probable changes of Government, it would enable the Imperial authorities to formulate a permanent emigratine policy both politically and financially.