PRODUCTION AND TRADE

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIV, Issue 81, 17 March 1934, Page 9

PRODUCTION AND TRADE

Time for Their Proper Placing MR. M. J. SAVAGE AT GORE By Telegraph—Press Association GORE, March 16. Speaking at Gore to-night, Mr M. J. Savage leader of the Opposition, stated that the tirru was long overdue for the proper placing of production and overseas trade. The present tendency was to restrict existing forms of production by means of the introduction of the quota. If the Dominion exports were to be restricted, there appeared to be only one logical alternative—namely, to build a home markets. That could be done only by the development of New Zealand industries. New Zealand woollens were amongst the best in the world, and in many other lines Dominion products would compare favourably with the best imported. There was no reason for waiting for other countries to move before beginning to put their own house in order. Children leaving school were entitled to expect remunerative positions in the work of building industries. If we could not exchange primary products for the manufactures of other countries, there was only one reasonable thing left, and that was to exchange a greater percentage of primary products with additional manufactures end services in our own country. The time had come for a stocktaking, and after having considered the natural resources and external commitments we should begin a. national plan of reconstruction. With an annual expenditure of over £4,000,000 on questionable forms of relief work, on which all kinds of skilled labour was at present employed, it was not difficult to form some estimate of the real cost of a large part of our imports which might have been produced in the Dominion. The planning of external trade was of equal importance, and immediate steps should be taken to enter into definite agreements with other parts of the British Commonwealth with the object of exchanging primary products for goods that cannot be economically produced in the Dominion. Goode which must be imported should enter New Zealand free of duty. There was no logical argument in favour of tariffs in the case of goods which must be Imported. A vote of thanks and confidence was carried in favour of the speaker.