TRADE WITH GREAT BRITAIN

Taranaki Daily News, 21 February 1935, Page 4

TRADE WITH GREAT BRITAIN

There will be general agreement with the statement of the Minister of Agriculture in Great Britain, Mr. Walter Elliot, that negotiations in regard to the restrictions there of imports of meat and daily produce must be the subject of patient and friendly negotiation. Mr. Elliot and his colleagues have given an earnest of their desire for such, negotiations by extending for a further period the subsidy to home beef producers while discussions with other suppliers of Britain’s markets continue. The Minister informed the House of Commons that restriction on meat imports would be brought about by means of a duty rather than by a quota, but how that will affect New Zealand is not yet clear. The Prime Minister repudiates a London newspaper’s assertion that the Dominion has agreed to a duty upon beef, provided mutton and lamb are admitted freely to Great Britain. Mr. Forbds also stated that the negotiations would not be completed until after a further conference in England. This presumably means there will be Ministerial representation at that conference, for, as the Prime Minister stated, there can be no doubt of the importance of its outcome so far as the Dominion is concerned. Protection of the home producer is still an integral portion of the policy of Great Britain, and Mr. Elliot has now intimated how it is proposed to afford that protection. By extending the period in which negotiations are to proceed the Imperial authorities have indicated not only that they recognise the importance of the matter to the welfare of the Dominions but that, they are prepared to give a full and sympathetic hearing to the case.