THE BRITISH EMPIRE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16488, 4 November 1927, Page 7

THE BRITISH EMPIRE

AS AN ECONOMIC UNIT COULD LEAD THE WORLD AN AMBITIOUS PROPOSAL (British Official Wireless.) Rec. 10 a.m. LONDON, Nov. 2. Sir Alfred Mond, speaking upon the subject of Empire economic unity at a public meeting held under the auspices of tho Empire Industries Association, said that on a proper and true solution of the organisation of the British Empire as an economic unity depended not merely the economic prosperity of the millions of people on these shores, but depended still more the whole future existence of that great structure of self-governing Dominions, Commonwealths, and farflung territories under the administration of the Crown, which formed at once the admiration, envy, and despair of other nations in command of some of the world's loading commodities. We had a position' which ought to enable us to compel most favorable trading terms from other countries if our resources were utilised unitedly, and in a right way. Sir Alfred quoted figures showing the remarkable development of the interchange of goods between this country and the overseas Dominions, anil declared that inter-Imperial trade was, becoming the dominating factor in the trade position of the world, and of this country. He advocated the expenditure of m.uch larger sums on settlement in the Dominions. Such a policy, ho declared, would create pur--1 chasers in the Dominions for some goods, and relievo the labor market at Home. Tho time had come for the achievement of this ideal. I (E!ec Tel. Copyright-United Press Assn.) j (Australian and N.Z. Cable- Association.) i The Financial Times describes Sir I Alfred Mond's proposal as a bold, ! imaginative plan. Sir Alfred said: "With America one great combinnI tion, and. Europe becoming another, the question arises as to whether j Britain should remain in isolation be- ! tween the two vast bodies, or create an Imperial unit more powerful than I either. Why should we fear a general tariff in the Empire? It would enable us to dictate most favorable trading terms to the world. Tho British Empire, with America's conditions of free internal exchange and : a tariff against the rest, of the world, | could produce more than Americans ever dreamt of. There is no econo-j nvic entity that could possibly com-! pete with the Empire when the advantages of size, population, re-' sources, and markets are considered.". Sir Alfred quoted, a string of remarkable figures of British and Australian trade for the purpose of em-, phasising that inter-Imperial trade was becoming a dominating factor in the world, as well as in British trade. - I The Financial News editorially states: "Britain cannot settle down as a self-supporting nation like Denmark. Ifa idly more attractive is a league between itself and Europe, which, as :i market, is incapable of much further expansion. Practical, nun must turn to the Empire. If we: h:id a union of Empire, such as between Ihe different States of, America, we should be the greatest market in the world, and self-supporting.] We need chains, where we have nowj only string."