ECONOMIC CONFERENCE

Greymouth Evening Star, 25 June 1923, Page 5

ECONOMIC CONFERENCE

IMPERIA*. PREFERENCE. SOUTH AFRICA'S ATTITUDE. ) (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.) CAPETOWN, June 24. e In the Assembly the Premier (Gen--1 eral Smuts) initiated . a discussion f upon the agenda for the forthcoming t Economic Conference. Referring to , reciprocal preference between the i various parts of the Empire, he declared that preference hitherto had 3 been, largely, to the advantage of j Brirain rather than the Dominions -' producers. He was sure that the ! question of Imperial preference was r going to be raised. Ihe position i South Africa would adopt would be . to welcome any assistance the Br.d--j ish people could give in the way of l preference to South African products. . Owing to the British fiscal policy, the ; field for preference was of the smallest and most limited. That was where ; the question would arise, and Aus- ; tralia and New Zealand were going ’ to press more strongly for a very j much stronger measure of preference being accorded to their products. South Africa was \ not going to presa. the British Government to change’ their fiscal policy, which was a question the people of Britain must settle, but ho was going to point out from the Dominions point of view the large advantages that would accrue to. the Empire from widened preference. South Africa in regard to the fiscal policy in general would adopt the same line as Canada had done. He emphasised that the development of South Africa would require a very wide expansion of their markets throughout the world. Whatever arrangements they might make at the Conference they would not be of an exclusive character. They had at present preference to Britain and reciprocity with the Dominions, but it might lie that in years to come they would have to reshape their policy on different fiscal lines. The door should be left open to develop trade with other countries, and the policy should be reshaped to make it possible to distinguish between countries who t -cat us badly. He stressed the need for better Empire shipping and other communications and properly regulated overseas settlement. He also foreshadowed that the Government proposed to appoint a Trade Commissioner for the United States and Canada. Tlie Nationalist Leader, Mr Malan, warned Premier Smuts to be on as regards the. Economic Confer-

guiu’U as regards tne itconomic vonierence, which was intended to benefit England, not the, Dominions. The Labour Leader, Air Boydell, told Premier Smuts the sooner the Government got it into its head that State shipping could be made a- success, the better. He favoured a reciprocal State shipping policy between Australia and South Africa. In the Senate, Premier Smuts, referring to the European situation, declared that unless we mobilised the forces of public opinion throughout the world we would , never secure universal peace. He would leave no stone unturned in trying to produce a more peaceful temper and avoiding the dangers to which Europe was rapidly slipping. 1 There were good prospects of a settlement of the Indian crisis in Kenya, but they had to be very careful not to embark on policies which would strike at the roots of the great civilisation which was building up South Africa. Parliament has been prorogued. Much interest and importance was attached to the Uitenhage by-election, as it was the first wherein the NationalistLabour compact operated. An exciting •Contest resulted in the Government retaining the scat by a majority of 58.