EMPIRE MARKETS.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 December 1924, Page 7

EMPIRE MARKETS.

&EW TRADE PROPOSALS. £1,000,000 AS SUBSIDY. COMMITTEE TO ADVISE. PREFERENCE RETAINED. By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. Received Dec. 18, 8.10 p.m. London. Dec. IS. ’n the House of Commons the Premier (Mr. Stanley Baldwin ) announced that XI,000.(MM) would be allocated an.nually to developing schemes for marketing Dominion produce. The speeche* of the Liberal and Labour leaders suggest that the Opposition intends to make the most of the opportunity to launch the fiscal policy anew. A number of members of the Opposition, however, are evidently disposed to favourably consider the Empire subsidy plan, whieh the Daily Telegraph thus outlines:—“The Government will invite the Dominions to set up an Imperial Economic 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 Imperial preferences, whieh will involve decreasing the existing duties to British taxpayers, but 'small duties on apples and tinned fish are to be dropped, and a subsidy of £1.000,(MM) per annum instead expended by the Imperial Economic Committee in improving interImperial markets.”

ATTITUDE OF LIBERALS. Even Mr. Lloyd George (Leader of the Liberal Party) is not altogether unfriendly toward the Empire subsidy. He □oped the Government would not have ■egard merely for the carriage of goods from the Dominions but the carriage of our goods to the Dominions. Personally he had always regretted that the ideas mooted at the 1907 conference were not carried through, a* 1 it was impossible to carry a tariff involving a tax on bread. Captain Wedgwood Benn, representing the other 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 exsting duties, ami thus be even more difficult to deal w’ith than vested interests in Britain.

Sir Edward Grigg, speaking from the Liberal benches, however, welcomed the declaration of the Preinjgr (Mr. Stanley Baldwin) regarding Imperial preference, and wa«s glad he hid kept faith with the Dominions.

Mr. Philip Snowden (Labour), in a caustic speech, sneered at the Government’s proposals as an effort to keep thg Empire together by the subvention of £1.000.000. He attributed the new version of preference to Mr. Winston Churchill (Chancellor of rise Exchequer), whom he described_ as rhe great political acrobat. Mr.’ Snowden said the Labour Party was net opposed to spending money in the promotion of Imperial trade, provided it was done the right way, but the party objected to this subvention because it 'was goings to increase the price of food from the Dornin io ire. ** NO FOOD TA.tES.

Captain Haden Guest* said he was prepared to believe that a boldly conceived Dominion policy would put a new complexion on the life of the people of Britain and the Dominions, but this could not be achieved by little patchwork by means of preference. The pity was that the people.of Britain did not know the Empire. It would pay the Government to make Empire travel excessively cheap. Mr. Churchill, replying to the debate, boldly claimed that the Government’s Empire trade were practically those of the Liberal Government in 1907, and would give effect to the policy of Imperial preference without the imposition of food taxes (Ministerial cheers). The Government’s desire waa to encourage Empire products at the expense of foreigners, not at the expense of domestic producers. The Morning Post and the Financial Times commend Mr. Baldwin’s proposals, especially pre.\renee. The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Express make no comment, but the Daily Chronicle ftresses the danger of protection.

PROPOSALS IN THE COMMONS. , LIBERAL AMENDMENT LOST. ELECT lON PLEDGES KEPT. Received Dec. 18 11.25 p.m. London. Dec. 17. In the House of Commons during the debate on the Address-in-Reply Captain Wedgwood Benn moved the official Liberal amendment, regretting the King’s Speech did not mention constructive proposals for dealing with unemployment, but foreshadowed the introduction of tariffs and preference, which would raise prices, increase the cost of living, hamper industry and reduce employment. Mr. Baldwin, replying, said the Government attached great importance to the constitution of an Imperial Economic Committee. The specific reference to the committee, upon which the Dominions bad been invited to nominate members, was to consider the possibility of improving the methods of preparing for the market, and marketing within the United Kingdom food products from' the overseas parts of the Empire with a view to increasing the consumption of Dominion products in the United Kingdom in preference to imports from foreign countries, and to promote the interests both of producers and consumers. The Government intended to re-r.’bmit to the House all the resolutions of the last Economic Conference, whieh involved reductions in the duty. He adhered to the pledge he made in hi* £ iceti>n speech at Gravesend that preference would not be used as the thin edge of the wedge to tax food. He hoped to secure an increase in trade with the Dominions by the proposal that the full noney equivalent of the advantages that vould have been conferred on the Emure in respect cf any duties which were not retailed should be d?voted to

schemes for developing trade within the and, firstly, schemas for marketing. It was hoped to allocate £1,000,000 annually for this purpose. Hp thought, with the contemplated Economic Committee, on whi-.’i British and Dominion experts would be re prerented, and with the terms >f reference

he had mentioned, it might be possible to open entirely new and untried ways cf developing Imperial trade. He 1 oped these would be of far greater benefit to the Dominions than v wo or Ji cc small taxes proposed at the last Economic Conference.

Mr. Baldwin said the first things to oe remitted to the Economic ‘?oii>r.-nce would be meat and fruit. .t was ini possible to touch meat a .id fruit by taxes, but it was hoped to dev is ? a scheme to somewhat alter tn? course of trade for the benefit of the Empire and the benefit of our own people without taxing food. * After paying a tribute to Mr. J. H. Thomas (Colonial Secretary m the Labour Cabinet) for his highly valuable efforts for the maintenance of Empire interests, Mr. Baldwin said a new Safeguarding of Industries Bill would be introduced next summer, and applied in justifiable cases. He expressed the opinion that any duty levied under this Act should be general, and not a discriminating duty. Preference on these duties would be given the Dominions.

HELPING EMPIRE PRODUCERS. Replying to Mr. Lloyd George, the Premier said such a general duty would apply to all countries, even though unfair competition was only encountered from one. Mr. Lloyd George interpreted Mr. Baldwin’s statement regarding the preference resolution as meaning that no duties would be granted the Dominions or colonies on food, and any existing preference would refer only to the existing duties and not to the creation of fresh ones. He roundly condemned the announcement regarding the safeguarding of industries as rot being a straightforward way of introducing a general tariff, and a transformation of the fiscal system. Mr. Lloyd George, declared that it was the gravest proposal he had ever heard from a British Prime Minister.

Mr. Churchill said the proposed expenditure on Empire objects instead of food dutiea would be not dissimilar from the lines of the Imperial Conference proposals of 1-907 tor improved communications in marketing and the popularising of Empire products. Great care would have to be taken not to do an injustice to ouj own agricultural producers.

The Liberal amendment was defeated by 339 votes to 151, and the Address was agreed to.