COMMERCE CONGRESS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXX, 3 October 1936, Page 8

COMMERCE CONGRESS

PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS “UNSETTLED, NOT TO SAY DANGEROUS TIMES” EMPIRE'S GREAT RESPONSIBILITY (United Press Association) WELLINGTON, 2nd October. Viscount Elibank delivered his presidential address to the Chambers of Commerce Congress this afternoon. "In addressing you as your president at the opening of this fourteenth Congress,” said Lord Elibank, “you would, i know, wish me to express the profound grief of the business men of the Empire at the loss which we have sustained through the death of our late beloved Sovereign, King George V. Of his qualities as the supreme head of the'British Empire, and as a simple, conscientious man, those in high places all over the Empire have already spoken. King George honoured us by consenting to be patron of many of our Congresses, and invited the delegates to Buckingham Palace on every occasion that the Congress met in London during his reign. “It is a matter of deep satisfaction that His Majesty King Edward VIII has graciously consented to be patron of this Congress. I propose presently to ask for your authority to send to His Majesty a message of congratulation of loyalty, and of dutiful service.

“It is exactly fifty years since the first Congress was called together by the London Chamber of Commerce, which in those early days acted as convener, a duty which has since devolved upon this federation. In fact, this is our jubilee year. I am sure the New Zealand delegates here today will he interested to know that not only Wellington, but Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Invercargill, Napier and Nelson were represented at that first meeting in 1886, and may I add that Wellington has only missed two of the whole series; Auckland, Canterbury and Dunedin only three—surely a remarkable record for a Dominion situated so far from London, where most of the Congresses have been held.

"It is fitting that we should celebrate our jubilee in New Zealand, which does a larger import and export trade with tne United Kingdom per head of population than any other Dominion. "I could wish here to thank our hosts for the warmth of their welcome: there have been, and will be, however, better and more appropriate occasions; moreover, before we separate we shall formally record our appreciation of ail that has been-done for us. WHAT CONGRESSES HAVE DONE “I have no time to speak in detail of the achievements of the Congress in the past. The fight for Imperial preference began as far back as 1892, and the Congress early brought about the abolition of clauses in commercial treaties, the existence of which made Imperial preference impossible. I may remind you that Mr Joseph Chamberlain, the centenary of whose birth nas has been celebrated this year, was honorary president of, and addressed, the third Congress, 1896. The very first Congress discussed the possibility of what they called an Anglo-Colonial Penny Postage Union; penny post came, but the Great War led to its abandonment within the Empire except New Zealand, yvhich is greatly to her credit. The times have not yet been propitious for its general restoration.

“In 189 G the Congress urged the immediate laying down of the Pacific cable. In 1900, for the first time, the question of the defences of the Empire came forward, then the subject of food supplies in time of war, and only two years before the Great War the proposed ratification by the Home Government of the Declaration of London was unanimously condemned; ratification would, all now realise, have proved a terrible calamity in the war. “I could mention many more subjects—arbitration, bills of lading, double income tax, Post and Telegraph questions, air communications, Imperial education—these I choose at random —in connection with which the Congress has an excellent and successful record.

PROGRESS SINCE 1933 “It is customary on these occasions for the president to give some idea as to how the resolutions of the preceding Congress have fared—-in this case the London Congress in 1933: one of the functions of the federation, as you know, is to press forward, in. the interim between congresses, the proposals contained in the Congress resolutions.

“The ‘Junior History of the British Empire Oversea.’ which constitutes the second phase of the federation’s effort to bring about more direct instruction in schools concerning the British Empire, has run into a third edition. The federation owes a debt of gratitude to Mr Cecil Powell and Mr Arthur Aiton, who made the publication of this book financially possible “In the matter of air transport, definite progress has been achieved, and more is promised, though I may mention that the United Kingdom is still handicapped by retaining the half-ounce minimum for letters as compared with the 5 grammes, or only just over a sixth of an ounce, of many other countries. There has been an extension of inter-Imperial telephone communcation. Canada has now adopted the 221 b maximum for parcels; the United Kingdom has introduced the ‘Green Label’ system which permits of dutiable articles being sent by letter post. Supplementary duties—primage duties, package duties, and so on, are gradually being eliminated.

UNFULFILLED EXPECTATIONS “In some directions little progress can be recorded: the resolutions to come before this Congress provide evidence of that. I think it is generally felt in commercial circles that whilst the foundations that were laid were sound the results of the Ottawa Agreements have so far fallen somewhat short of expectations. They have certainly been effective up to a point, but I might be permitted to suggest that the various Governments concerned are perhaps moving forward too cautiously. I will not say more on

this occasion, for the whole subject is to be debated next week.

On the other side of the picture we find ourselves faced by competition from countries having a very low standard of living, which we have helped to equip with the most modern machinery and transport. Unless we recognise the changed conditions and adopt new methods to meet them, unrestricted competition in price will lead to retrogression rather than progress in civilisation. The advanced nations must protect themselves against this, unless—-which would be far wiser—means can be found to induce the backward nations to raise their standards of living. PRODUCTION AND MONETARY SYSTEM “We passed a resolution in 1933 drawing attention to the fact that the immense advances which had been made in the science of production had not been paralleled by a corresponding advance in the monetary system. That resolution called upon the Governments of the Empire to concentrate upon finding a monetary system which would enable the peoples of the world to receive the benefits of the abundance of food, raw materials and capital equipment which technological improvements had made available.

“This is one of the major problems of our time. Its solution would open a new and happier chapter in human history and, moreover, would remove one of the principal causes of war. “Through the ages man has struggled with the forces of nature in an endeavour to extract enough to be able to live; his difficulty was to produce sufficient to go round. For the first time in history there has been a crisis of great severity, due largely to abundance and not, as in the past, to scarcity. One of the most essential points in connection with the solution of this problem is the stabilisation of exchanges and the removal, so far as possible, of trade restrictions and quotas. “In this connection I would like to remind you that the Congress of 1933 recommended that in the event of international agreement on the subject proving impossible, the Empire countries should systematise and develop their present currencies in the form of a sterling union and that this union should be open to any other nations on their agreement to share in the obligations and responsibilities. Within the sterling area to-day are nations which conduct more than a third of the world’s trade.

FRENCH DEVALUATION “Within the past few days there has been a very important incident; a great and ameliorating change has occurred by the devaluation of the French franc, which is being followed by the devaluation of their currencies by both Switzerland and Holland and by other countries still on the gold standard. This creates an entirely different situation and presents a real hope for international stabilisation of exchanges for which the world has long been yearning. At tlie same time, we within the Empire have our special interests to safeguard in view of our trade agreements and other measures which we have taken for Empire trade consolidation. We also presume that other colonyowning nations will make arrangements to meet their conditions. Consequently. I cordially welcome the paragraph contained in the Declaration of British Policy issued by the London Treasury last week, in which the British Government says that, of course, in its policy towards international monetary relations there must be taken fully into account the'requirements of the internal prosperity of the Empire countries, as corresponding considerations will be taken into account by the French and American Governments. There is, I am sure, no delegate to this Congress who will not warmly endorse that statement.

“We are living in unsettled, not to say dangerous times. The war to end war termined in 1918, yet almost ever since war clouds have hung on the horizon. Many nations are looking to the British Empire for leadership and we must have the courage to recognise that new world conditions have arisen and that because certain methods have served us well in the past it by no means follows that they will serve in the future. A great responsibility rests upon the British Empire; may we, .as representatives of the commercial communities of the Empire, in our deliberations and actions, be worthy of our trust.”