Different Opinions

Northern Advocate, 12 January 1948, Page 3

Different Opinions

LONDON, Sun.—The Sunday Express in a leader says that however much the British people appreciate the ordinary American citizen’s generous intentions, they must not blind thexnselves to the fact that Marshall aid is the biggest threat to Empire trade Britain has ever had to face.

It surpasses the “sell-out” at the Geneva trade conference the paper adds.

The Marshall Plan will unbalance all the schemes we have made for Empire developments and will tie us, perhaps forever, to the American and European economics. The Observer says the Beavei’brook newspapers, which are attacking the Marshall Plan, are careful not to say what the cost of refusing aid would be.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Sir Stafford Cripps) made it plain last week that Britain’s production without dollar aid would decline, and far from standing on our own feet we would sink to our knees.

Loan Not Wanted WASHINGTON, Sun.—The American loan to Britain was strongly defended by the United States Ambassador to Britain (Mr Lewis Douglas) in an address to the Foreign Relations Committee of the Senate, which is examining the European recovei'y programme. Mr Douglas said none of the loan to Britain had been wasted. British expenditure on tobacco and films' had been a “drop in the bucket.” Had the loan not been granted, the United States would have suffered very great adverse effects. Britain’s expenditure in other parts of the world would have been cut off. thereby directly affecting the United States. Mr Douglas, who has been mentioned as the probable administrator of the European aid programme, anls defended the 16 Western European nations against Congressional accusations of inefficiency and bungling in handling their own recovei'y plans. He repeated the warning that the Secretary of State (Mr Marshall) gave this week that the rejection or reduction of the aid programme would bring dicatorships throughout Europe and compel the United States to become “an ai'med camp.”