FRAMING A TARIFF

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LIV, 31 October 1921, Page 7

FRAMING A TARIFF

TACKLING A HARD PROBLEM

Sp'siking at the. opening of the Inlustries Exhibition at Wellington, the Hon. W. 1). Stewart,, Minister of Cusolms. I’ct’orml to tho framing of the n ".v tariff proposals. This was, he -aid, th 0 first, time the preparation of the tariff had been preceded by a Royal Commission visiting tho centres to 'investigate the manufactures and inquire into their prospects; and i!t G work •if tbe Commission would enormously lighten the burden oM’arliarm:nt. There had been some criticism on the ground that the Commission should be composed of outside public men, but, boivuise the Prime Minister thought it would be difficult to select men who were not directly or indirectly interest'd, a- Departmental Commission was sot up. He had been pleased to find that manufacturers had expressed the fullest confidence in the work of the Commission. realising that they wore in the hands of men \vho_ understood their task and were not affected by any academic views on Tree Trade ol 1 roto.e-

Tbo Minister said that the work of building a tirriff was now one of extract'd iiiiavy difficulty. The world was m a state of flux. Many industries bad been'Mmilt up in highly industrialised coiWuries, and wore ovov-capitansea, ■j„d ‘plow that prices wore falling they would subject tho New Zealand manufacturers f» very severe competition. This was one of the tilings that had to bo borne in. mind in laying down Hie lines of a new tariff. There were also new problems such as that presented bv the tangle of exchanges; and the .W, question of dumping bad io be Thov bad been carefully studying what was being done m Canada ■uid elsewhere to rued this difficulty. ■ Another of ibe problems before the ■ (timniissioii, the Ministm- said, was that of Um “war babies.” the industries wbieh bad sprung up m New Zealand under such cover as the revenue tariff afforded, while foreign importations were impossible. The renewal, of foreign supplies had injured these industries. and it was very difficult to deride how far the Commission was justified keeping alive, an industry which owed its existence fo temporary condo

Tin, IVmie Minister had staled in the House, Mr Stewart tunlinued. limb his (Tima rv eonsideral inn in regard to tho tariff numb bo revenue, rather than protection. Tina nee to-day over-rode ~v,nw other question. However anxious 'they might be. to afford protection (o ;i ,p indusfrv, tlie primary consideration was that other sources of revenue wire drying up, and it, was imperative for tho Minister of Finance that the tariff should be made to supplement tho revenue as far us was reasonably possible. If he went in for a policy of high protection, there was no surer way of stopping revenue. But so far as was possible, the needs of the Minister of Finance, and tho needs of industries would bo reconciled.