IMPERIAL TRADE

New Zealand Times, Volume LI, Issue 12016, 19 December 1924, Page 6

IMPERIAL TRADE

BRITISH GOVERNMENT'S POLICY DECLARED it' . SUBSIDY OF £1.000,000 ANNUALLY PROPOSED i : ♦ ■ . t■ . ■ ■ ■ '■ ■; ■.. ECONQMIG COMMITTEE TO ENVOLVE SCHEMES I \ '■ /• 1; ' ■■ NO FRESH TAXES ON BRITISH FOOD | The expected announcement of - the Conservative Government’s policy was made “by Mr Baldwin in the House of Commons. >•. i > ’> £ The Government propose? ;tp, ask>qaj;e ,000,000 a y|ar for the development t3xe ; Empire, "and Specially for the marketing*, . products in v »jjS The development work of 1 an Imperial -Economic Committee, on which the dominions will be ie- * presented. ’ * r < -* ■ > Mr Baldwin adheres to his'pledge not to iirnn'!* tr>x<*s food, either directly* or indirectly. ,

I N LIEU OF DUTIES ~~ £I,OOO,OQfJFOR DEVELOPMENT ’ ’' 1 "ENTIRELY NEW WAYS.” ' jf Beuter'a Teleeram. . v (RecKyed December Iff, 11.25 p.m.) f LONDON, December 17. ' In |he House of Commons, during ; the debate on the Addrcss-in-Reply, Captain Wedgwood Bonn (Lib.)' moved the official Liberal amendment, regretting ihat the King’s Speech did' not mention constructive proposals for dealing feh unemployment, hut foreshad' 1 owed ghe introduction oftariffs'and preference which would raise prices,- increasepthe' cost of living, hamper industry* and reduce employment. PURPOSE OP COMMITTEE. Mr Stanley Baldwin, in replying, said he Government attached great importnice to tho constitution of the Imperial Economic Committee. The specific reference of the committee, upon which the dominions had been invited to nominate qjpmbers, was to consider the possibility Bf improving the methods of preparing forthe market and marketing the United Kingdom food products - from the overseas parted of the Empire, with a view to' increasing the consnmptilon of them in the United Kingdom in preference to imports from foreign countries; and to promote the t interests both of producers and consumers. TheUCoyenpnentt intended to re-sub* mit tit the House all the resolutions of the/ last Economic Conference, which involved" restrictions in doty. He adhered to the pledge made in his election speechp at . Gravesend that preference * wouldfnot be used as the thin edge of the wedge to tax food. “PULL MONEY EQUIVALENT.’* He hoped to seerure*an increase in trade with the dominions by a proposal that the fall money equivalent of the advantages that would have been %daferredv.«fc, the, Empire in reapectofe'wus , duties which were not retained should be. demoted- to schemes for developing? trade within the Empire, and, first, schemes for marketing. It was hoped to allocate £1,000,0G0 annually forthis purpose. He thought that with the contemplated Economic Committee, on which British and Dominion experts would he represented,, and with the afore men-' tiened terms' of '-reference, it- might "be possible to, open entirely new and untried developing Imperial trade. He hoped these would .he of far greater benefit to the Dominion than the twd or tbred small taxes proposed at the last Economic Conference. ' ’ f SAFEGUARDING INDUSTRIES. Mr Baldwin said the first things to be remittecT to the Economic Committee would be meat and fruit. It was

impossible to touch,meat and ■fraii by taxes, - huh it was hoped to devise a scheme to alter somewhat the conrn of trade so -as tq benefit the Erfipire and benefit their own people without taxing food. After paying a tribute to-Mr J. H, Thomas (formerly Colonial Secretary) tar, his highly valuable efforts -in the maintenance of’ Empire interests, Ml Baldwin said a new Safeguarding oi Industries Bill would be introduced next summaSr, and applied to justifiable cases. He- expressed the opinion that any duty levied-under this Act should be a general,'not a discriminating duty. Preference on these duties would be given the dominions. Replying to Mr Lloyd George, tfie Premier said such a general duty would etyply -taliUkcauntries, even thohgh-mn fair competition was only encountered from pne. . , Mr Philip Snowden (Lob.) declared that the Empire apparently was. to bo kept together by a British subvention of £I;QO(>,QOG adnuallv .to the dominions. ■ - N 9 FRESH PREFERENCES. Mr Lloyd'George,.Leader of the Liberal Party, interpreted Mr Baldwin’s statement regarding the preference resolution as .meaning that no duties would he granted the dominions . or coloriyk on food, -and any existing preference would refer only to existing duties and not to the, creation of fresh ones. -He roundly condemned the Safe" guarding of industries announcement as not straightforward .way of introducing a general tariff, and the transformation of the fiseal system. Mr Lloyd George, declared it the gravest proposal ’he had, ever heard from a British Prime Minister, i. ' MrJWinston Churchill, Chancellor "of the Exchequer, said 'the proposed - expend! tare on Empire objects instead of food duties would not" be dissimilar from fhe lines of the Imperial Conference .proposals in I£D7 for improved communications, and the marketing and popularising of Empire products. Great care would have to he taken not to do-an injustice to our own -agricultural producers. * . The Liberal ipnendment was defeated by 339 votes to 151, and the Addreae- *- m-Reply was agreed to.

RECEPTION OF THE PLAN SOMEh LIBERALS IN FAVOUR ;* :■ i&RTT COLD. - 'r, /• . k. Australian and If.Z. Cable Association (Received Deoensber 18, 8.10 p.m.) ' . WINDON, December 18. IJ» of Liberal and Labour Readers suggest that the Opposition, intends to make the,'most ot the opportunity to launch the fiscal controversy anew, but a number of Opposition members are evidently disposed favourably to • consider the Empire subsidy plan, vhioh the’ ‘ ‘Daily Telegraph” thus outlines:— :- ,‘i : y j-": r: ‘,‘The Government' will invite the dominions to set up an imperial Eeonomio Committee, which will be purely advisory, but will be charged with - the duty of inquiring as to the best means of marketing - dominion products. The Government will also carry the .Imperial preferences,, which will involve decreasing the existing dn**® B -toßritish taxpayers, but the smalt duties' on apples and ' tinped,fish, are to be dropped by the - Imperialßconomio Committee in improving ihter-Imperial -markets.” TWO IdBERAD VIEWS, i

Even Mr Lloyd George is not altogether unfriendly toward the. Empire subsidy. Hie daod he hoped the Government would not, nave j-qgard merely to the carriage ,af ,goods from -the dominions, but to the. carriage .of British goods to the.dominions. Personally, he had always regretted that the ideas -mooted as, the l§o7 conferejgpe were not carried through,' 'os’ it was' impossible to. cafry a tariff involving a 1 tax ,jon breik|. CAptain Wedgwood Benn, represonting thefUether section of., the liberal Party, argued that' even'if preference did not involve the imposition of-new and higher duties it would give-, the dominions a vested interest in the existing duties, and thus he even more difficult to deal with .than vested inBrittoh. - ' •• &r -Edward Grigg, however, speakLiberal benches welcomed Mr Baldwin’s declaratio i regarding, lßmperial : pref.exenoe- and was g£hid kebt frith with-- the do- ‘ 1 f 'Wli* PRiIGBS BE 'HIGHER? Mr ]RfciKjo Snowdeh)(Lab.) ih'a caua. tic snemnd at the Government’s an effort to keep'the pare .together by a-.subvention,, l of attributed the new veri' sfon ofc.prefeFence to Mr" Winston, Cffinrehai.'-wbibwr he deecribed as “thb’ riteatedfi poHtSoftl acrobat.” .Mr Snow’si opposed%to spending 'money, nr the pro-’ WAre <foifhd)he right way,., but the party objected to ’ subvehticm,' because it going.*io ' inoreaso the price ' cf*food from the domiuions.

[it ' PLAN NOT ADEQUATE. i[Dr Haden Guest (Lab.) said he was, prepared to believe that a (boldly 0011cmved 'dominion policy would put ' ndw completion on the life of the'poopie ofßritainand the dominione,: but" tMs sawSt achieved by a .ittie--patchwork by meanrf' of preference. 'Tuer: pity inis that the people of BritiVt) did noi .know the Empire. It wdijW . travel ejeefflifely obeap. ■ v.j .AT FOREIGNERS’ EXPENSE., ‘ ■'Mr Churchill, replying to the debate, baldly claimed that the GovernmentV Empire trade proposals were practically those of the Liberal. Government I *ht-i1907, and would give effect-to v. h policy of Imperial preference, wi jhifti I ■ the imposition of food /taxes. (Minis-’ terial cheers.) The Government’s sire was to encourage Empire products at the expense of foreigners, pot A at the; expense‘of domestic producers:. PREBB COMMENTB ; CONBEiRVATIVES PLBASEDiM * 1 .. ' “ . ■t*. Hester’s Telegram. (Received December 13, 9.50 p.m.Y; LONDON, December 18. The “Morning Posy Sand the,“Fiiianqial Times” commend Mr. Baldwin’s proposals, especially that relating,. to preference. The. “Daily Telegraph??, and “Daily -Express” make :no .‘comment. The “Daily Chronicle’ ’ -•stresses ,tha danger of protection. PRICE OF BREAD HIGHER IN AMERICA ! EVIDENCE AT INQUIRY., •’ Australian and N./. Cable Association. (Received December 18. 8.10 p.m.y LONDON, December 18 . Giving evidence before the Food Prices Commission, Sir Herbert itobsoij, who went to Chicago in 1917 to buy* wheat for the British ; Government, ’said inquiries would undoubtedly obov that the price of in. New York, Chicago, Montreal, and Toronto washigher than in the United Kingdom. It was impossible, he said, to “corner” America's wheat'.now, as. the authorities would inteyiene, -and-no suctt attempt had been made .for 20 years past. He wa* decidedly not in favotir

if Government buying, which was the test way 'to raise prices. , —...~v--7 BTORACE OF FOODSTUFFS IDEA TO BE CONSIDERED. Reuter’s Telegram. •/ . LONDON, December 17. -•Replying to Mr Walter Baker, Sir P. .Clinliffe-Lister, President of the Board -of;iTrade, - said he did not doubt that 'the Royal Commission on Food Pood Prices and., the-Imperial Economic Com-mittee-would investigate the advantages l likely to accrue to Britain and the dominions by the storage and marketing of -wheat and other foodstuffs hero directly from the dominions.