ANGLO U.S. LOAN APPROVED

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 89, Issue 300, 20 December 1945, Page 5

ANGLO U.S. LOAN APPROVED

SMALL OPPOSITION VOTE IN HOUSE OF LORDS GENUINENESS OF AMERICA IS PRAISED BY LORD KEYNES * Recd. 6 p.m. London, Dee. 19. “America is not interested in our wounds, but in our convalescence. The agreement, though not perfectly satisfactory to us, does represent a compromise. ’ ’ So declared Lord Keynes, leader of the British delegation to Washington, who negotiated the recent Anglo-American Loan. He was speaking in the House of Lords debate, which yesterday approved of the American loan agreement by 90 votes to 8, and passed the Bretton Woods Bill through all stages without discussion.

Lord Keynes said he was sure that critics of the agreement were doing a serious injustice to the liberal purpose and intense goodwill of the American people, and to their ardent deiire to see Biltain a strong and effective party in getting the distressed and confused world into ways of peace and economic order. LIBERAL AMERICAN ACT “These proposals, on lop of LendLease. are an act of unprecedented lioerality as any country ever treated another in time of peace for the purpose of rebuilding the other’s strength and restoring its competitive power,” Lord Keynes added. “But I shall never as long as I live cease to regret •nat this is not an Interest-free loan. The interest charge is out of tune with underlying realities. The amount of money at stake cannot be important to the United States, but what a difference it would have made to our feelings and response.’’ Lord Keynes said he could well see that no one would accept the result of the negotiations unle-s he could understand the puproses and motives of the other side.

I have been of great value to the Empire as a whole.” Referring to Lord Altrincham’s 1 statement that Mr. Attlee, in America, | confined himself to presenting the i party and not the national case, Lord I Jowitt said that criticism was most unjust. There was a view held in certain quarters m America that the loan would be refused because Britain had a Socialist Government. It was most important that Mr. Attlee should explain that the Socialists were not a violent set of gangsters as they were sometimes depicted.

Lord Keynes continued: “What depth of misunderstanding governs criticism of the American attitude? The Americans find a post-mortem

assessment of relative services ana sacrifices among the leading Allied countries extremely distasteful and dissatisfying. It is better not to think that way; it is more practical and realistic to think, as the Americans do, in terms of the future, and to work out what credits, amounts and terms wilj do most service for the post-war world and for the general prosperity and friendship of the nations. America wanted certainty and we wanted elasticity. The amount of the Idfin in my view is cut too fine and does not allow for un-een contingencies. Nevertheless, the sum is considerable, and with the Canadian loan the British are committed sufficiently deeply. On balance, I think we should rest reasonably content.

“In matters of this kind, a point comes when one has to take no for an answer. There was no lack of generosity of mind and purpose on the part of the American negotiators. America’s loans to the other Allies are tied subject to a five-year moratorium; our* loan is without strings and is free to be extended in any part of the world. We in London felt that some form of financial aid approximating a draft might have been forthcoming, with Britain broadly indicating the policies she proposed to pursue. Clearly this would have given us the best of both worlds, but what ai depth of misunderstanding governs re-1 lations between even the most friendly ( nations if we imagine that such an easy arrangement would commend it- 1 self to the complex politics of Congress, or to the immeasurable remote ' public opinion of the United States.” ■ Lord Keynes related the stages of | the negotiations in Washington. He explained the American attitude to the British claim that America owed Britain something for carrying on alone in the first stages of war. SEVERE DISAPPOINTMENT “Here we had an early, severe disappointment,” he said. “It must be realised that we could not have obtained what we did except against this background, but the delegation quickly discovered that emphasis on past services was not good enough.” Lord Keynes went on to discuss Britain's relations with the sterling area. “It is a crazy idea to think that we can go on living after 1947 by borrowing from India and the Crown Colonies,” he said. “They will be wanting repayment. Was it really wise to borrow from Iran. Palestine, Egypt and Syria and leave Canada and America out of the arrangement? Preying on it and living on it is a way to destroy the sterling area. The way to maintain it is to restore it to what it was before the war.”

Discussing commercial policies generally, Lord Keynes said: “I believe we have successfully maintained the principles and objects which are best suited to the predicaments of this country. We are attempting a great step forward towards the goal of international economic order. I am not so worried as most people. If in the next five years the dollar turns out to be scarce, seldom will so many people have been right.” REDUCTION OF TARIFFS Lord Keynes said it was not a question of repaying America with direct imports. Britain never could do that but she could repay by her exports to the rest of the world. Most responsible people in the United States had entirely departed from the tariff ana export subsidy conception. For the first time in modern history the United States was going to exert ner full influence for a reduction of tariffs throughout the world. “If we are unable to meet our responsibilities, the United States will regard it as their fault and they will acquit us from blame,” he said. “The atmosphere is different from that of 20 years ago. They will endeavour to find a way out. This Anglo-American understanding may prove in the long run, the first step towards something more. I beg those who look askance at the plans to ponder deeply where they want to go.” Viscount Swinton said: “I believe the real feeling of the majority in this country is that they regret that force of circumstances compels us to accent these proposals.’’

Lord Bennett, asked why Congress was not asked to ratify the agreement first. He said the agreement when ratified by Congress might contain te r ms and conditions not in the document before Parliament. He pointed out that Canada and America had made an agreement which the Senate would not ratify.

“Preferences in the British Empire 1 were created by the American Govern- ‘ ment. and no one else,” he added, , “Preferences are family matters. The ; United States accepted the preferences | without protest, but since 1933-34 has consistently endeavoured to destroy j them. To have these family prefer-| cnees settled by other countries than, the family is essentially wrong. The : protective tariffs agreed on in 1932 1 saved Canada from bankruptcy and 1