OWN COUNTRY FIRST

Taranaki Daily News, 22 September 1931, Page 12

OWN COUNTRY FIRST

A NEW LEAGUE. SIXPENCE A WEEK. London, July 31. The British Employment Providers’ League, which is promoting the display of British products, held a meeting at Buckingham Hall, Westminster, this week. Admiral Mark Kerr presided, supported by Sir Robert Horne, M.P., and Sir Gilbert Vyle. The objective of the league is to influence the spending by the average adult of an extra sixpence a week on British instead of foreign goods. That, it is stated, would provide employment at British rates of wages for a quarter of a million of the men and women who are now unemployed. Badges have been provided in the form of a Tudor rose for display in shop windows and factories, and there is also a personal badge to indicate that its wearer, when about to—make purchases, desires to be shown first such goods as are produced (if possible) in Great Britain, or, as a second choice, goods produced in the overseas Empire. It is stated to mean “that, if the British article compares favourably as to price and quality with a similar foreign product, its wearer wishes to support the industry of his (or her) fellow-citizens.” Admiral Mark Kerr said that some ehopkeepers had been known to sell New Zealand butter and Australian bacon under the guise of it being.'Danish, because they had run out of the foreign product. The Dominion goods were superior in quality. to those from Denmark, and he condemned such a practice as wickedly dishonest. Sir Robert Horne said that unless Great Britain could get customers for the manufactures which she produced the country must suffer disaster. More and more was she shut out of foreign markets. During the last few years of depression the Mother Country had been saved only by the markets of Australia, New Zealand-, Canada, South Africa, and of other countries under the British Crown. They had been told that the time for making arrangements with the Dominions was now. To him the prospect of the Dominions making arrangements for trading with other countries spelt the end of the Empire, and, in addition, it meant disaster to the population of this country. The league had devised a plan whereby people would show that they wished British goods, and that they expected shopkeepers to provide them with British goods. They wanted to convince people that they* must display goods of the British Empire. The destinies. of the country depended on our uniting our interests with the young and virile nations that had sprung from our shores. Sir Gilbert Vyle said it was largely a matter for women, It was not suggested that from sheer sentiment they should pay more for a British article than they would pay for . something which was not British, but it was suggested that they should ask to be shown first something that was British. If they found it was beyond their means they had complete freedom to buy what they wanted. It was a lamentable fact at the present time that many foreign things were offered for sale when for quality and price there was a British equivalent.