DE VALERA’S POLICY

Greymouth Evening Star, 18 March 1932, Page 7

DE VALERA’S POLICY

REPUBLIC AS AIM-

(BY CABLE —PBESS ASSN. —COPYEIGHT.] DUBLIN, March 16. The suspension of the Public Safety Act, by executive action, at the next meeting of-the Executive Council has been announced by Mr De Valera in an interview. He added that with the impending removal of the oath, the I.R.A, will have no reason for its existence. It was not - thought that the I.R.A. was illegal. At least it was at present not engaged in any illegal action. The oath was purely a domestic matter. It had not called for any reference from Britain. ’

The Government, he said, proposed to protect Irish industries, but it did not contemplate a revenue tariff. Regarding Imperial preference, his Government were prepared to negotiate trade agreements for mutual preference. It had not been decided whether he would go to the Ottawa Conference. He hoped, eventually, to merge the office of into that of President of the Irish Republic. He did not intend to make another payment of land annuities. The onus of presenting a case in this direction rested with Britain. The annuities would go to the State, the farmers benefiting as citizens. The Government intended to claim the restoration of the annuities already paid, totalling thirty millions sterling. He hoped that the present unnatural boundaries between the north and south of Ireland would be broken down and that Ireland would be united.

Asked whether he proposed to renounce the Treaty with Britain, he re plied that he was not looking as far as that, but his ultimate object was the Irish Republic.