THE QUOTA QUESTION

Patea Mail, Volume LIII, 30 August 1933, Page 2

THE QUOTA QUESTION

CARDIFF CHAIRMAN'S VIEWS. BUY BRITISH GOODS. The question of quotas, unfortunately, had been projected upon the horizon of a record producing year, said Mr. C. A. Mar-chant, chairman ol the meeting of the Cardiff Dairy Co. on Monday night. The British Minister of Agriculture (Mr. W. E. Elliot), in his latest statement on the quota, said he was not so much worried about the butter position as about the cheese. “I sincerely hope," Mr. Marchant said, “that we may not be called upon to accept a restriction in - cheese exported to the British market, as a quota would certainly retard this country 's development. ’' The question could not be dismissed casually, but required the -whole thought and attention of the industry. Mr. Marchant thought the position could be helped by Now Zealanders insisting upon the purchase of British goods, and seeing that they were actually of British manufacture. . New Zealand should maintain that it was an indispensable unit of the Empire, and as such, should be willing, by a scaling down of duties and tariffs, to absorb goods of British origin. Eventually these goods should be admitted duty free. If quotas had to be accepted Mr. Marchant suggested two ways by which the position could in some measure be met. The first -was to abolish the waxing of cheese, which would represent a 2 per cent, reduction in the weight exported, and the second was the installation of separators to separate sufficient milk for calf-feeding on the farms. While these measures might be successful, there w r as still the future to bo considered. It was a matter of some concern to him as it affected the welfare of New Zealand's relations with Great Britain, especially if the demands for a quota were maintained and resisted until the commencement of the 1935 export season. That was a riddle that would have to be solved by the representatives of both sides. The avowed object of the present British Government w r as to give preference to those countries which gave preference to British manufactures. Hence, the more New Zealand purchased from Britain, the more secure was New Zealand's position made in the British markets. Mr. Marchant was satisfied that it was only along those lines that any hope could be entertained of resisting the ever-increasing pressure that tended towards New Zealand’s exclu-

sion from British markets. would have to realise that, should New Zealand be driven too hard or too far, it could not possibly meet its financial obligations overseas. That position might already have arisen except for the doubtful expedient of the 25 per cent, rate of exchange. Dairy--men and exporters, he felt, should raise’ their voices against demands made by manufacturers for the maintenance of existing duties on British goods!* Mr. Merchant asked how it would profit the country if the manufacturers in New Zealand-gain their objective and dairymen lost their market? " - ' ■ ' ' -- ; '

Mr. Merchant said lie was sure everybody .deplored tlie passing of the flue old. Imperial sentiment that had bound Britain and the Dominions up to the present, and the ushering in of a more sordid spirit that. might presage the death knell of the. Empire itself.

Mr. Merchant recalled that with the avowed object of assisting Now ; Zealand primary producers the Government on January 20 last artificially pegged the rate of exchange at £24 10s pcrccent, 'That had the effect of forcing more money into circulation and certainly had given some direct benefit to the producers. On the return of Messrs. Forbes aiM Masters, however, it, wadi, possible that the higher rate might be abandoned in favour of a lower rate. It had been stated, “Quotas off, exchange off," and if that proved to be correct the Government would be forced to adopt the repeated recommendations of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and give the exporters of primary produce an export bounty. It was certain that, if nothing was done to raise the price level of primary produce, the country would bo faced with the collective bankruptcy of the farming community.