CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18235, 20 November 1924, Page 10

CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE.

ANNUAL CONFERENCE.

(jBZSS ASSOCIATION T!XEG*AJf.) WANGANUT, November 18. For the first time since the inauguration of the Association, the annual conference of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of New Zealand is being held in a centre outside the four chief cities, the conference opening here this morn-

The Mayor (Mr Hope Gibbons) welcomed the delegates, his remarks being by Mr W. Brown, presi-. dent of tlve "War.ganui Chamber, and Mr W. A. Veiteh, M.P. . The chairman briefly welcomed thedelegates, and also, the visitors—Mr J. W.. Collins, of the Department'of Industries and Commerce, Mr D. Rodie, Commercial Manager, of the Railway Department, and Mr Messenger, of the Publicity Department.. President's Address! The president of the Association, Mr A. F. Roberts, of Wellington, who is in England as the New Zealand Commissioner at Wembley, forwarded a brief written address. Referring to the activities of the Chambers of Commerce, he said this question had been discussed by many Chambers throughout the Dominion with a view to extending their scope to cover many. phases of. public activity now carried .on by other bodies. During Ms stay in. the "United Kingdom he had ascertained that it was the uniform policy. of the Chambers there to confine their activities on the lines that had been adopted in New Zealand in the past, the consensus of opinion being that a Chamber of Commerce was intended "to function on the lines that, its name indicated. There was ample scope for the Chambers' energies in the Dominion in. assisting the development of trade and commerce, and they should continue on the lines followed hitherto. - From information he ' was .able to obtain while in London, it might safely, be stated that there was ho more prosperous part of the Empire to-day .thanNew Zealand.- Her! recovery from the after-war slump had been extraordinarily rapid. This, he. thought, might be attributed partly to the wonderful recuperative capacity of. the country itself \ and partly to the industry, energy, and determination .of the producing and commercial community. Hq felt sure that these factors had entered into New Zealand's recovery to a considerable extent, iii addition to the enormous improvements in the various markets that affected New Zealand produce. He was satisfied that in no other part of.the Empire did the farmer and the business man stick more closely to their jobs and put all their energy, into their task in bad times.

Dealing with Imperial trade, he impressed upon the delegates the advisability of continuing'the policy of trading with Great Britain. They must realise that it was to the United King-, dom tnat they, must look for a market, for their produce at the present time. They could maintain Britain's buying power only by purchasing all their requirements from her. At the present time : the United Kingdom was faced with keen commercial competition from Germany, and if! wM' difficult to foresee what would be the outcome of the recent agreement regarding : reparations, but it had certainly been received' -with anything but favour by the commercial in-, terests of Great;- Britain. He was convinced that it was all-important at this, time for every part of the Empire to stand by the Old Country, and by their support help her to win through her after-war troubles.

- Success of Exhibition. • Mr Boberts mentioned that he had been instrumental in holding, during September and.October, a series of trade conferences between representatives of every part of the Empire and representatives of all the different bodies of manufacturers in the United Kingdom, and he. was hopeful that some solid results would be obtained. Speaking, of the Empire Exhibition, he said the .results could not be reckoned in pounds, shillings, and pence. He was sure that from * the educational point of view the-Exhibition had been an enormous success. He had no hesitation in saying that, so far as the Dominion was concerned, the effects would be far-reaching. It was impossible to estimate the value of the propaganda that had emanated from their efforts. Eeferring to the adverse criticism of the New Zealand Pavilion, he said the object of the exhibit'was to interest the. people of Great Britain, and he had. no. hesitation in saying that this had been done. The exhibit undoubtedly . excelled in the display of those products which; formed the vast bulk of the Dominion's trade, and for good, solid, British propaganda the display" was undoubtedly satisfactory. He was sure that it would keep up itho wonderful reputation tfc,at New Zealand and her products enjoyed in Britain.. .....

: Imperial preference was a thorny question in the United Kingdom. It was quite apparent, that the majority of the people were in favour of some such scheme, but the opposition of the Freetraders was keen. He was sure, however, that a steady process of conversion to preference was taking place, and sooner or later the principle would become established. The Exhibition had' a considerable effect in this, direction.

in conclusion, Mr Roberts . paid a tribute to the work of the late secretary, Mr H. D. Viekery, and welcomed his successor, Mr C. M. Bowden. The chairman proposed that the conference express its hearty thanks to Mr' Roberts for having found time amid his pressing duties to write his presidential address,. and also, as the New Zealand Commissioner at Wembley, for his activity in the interests of Imperial trade. This was carried.

Eemits Carried. The following remits were carried: — The conference expresses general approval of the unanimous recommendations of the Taxation Commission, and satisfaction that the' reduction in the income-tax was approved by Parliament, being convinced that such a reduction is in the interests of the country, but regrets that the Minister of Finance has not indicated his acceptance of the further recommendations of the Commission,

The conference urges: (a) The abolition of the special rates on income from debentures; (b) that the Govern--ment Act upon the recommendations of the Commission preparatory to a change in the incidence on incomes of companies and of individuals. (c) That all State and. public body trading and public utility concerns should come under the provisions of the-Land and Income Tax Acts, and be charged land and income tax to the same extent as private' enterprises. , That Section 147 of the Land and I Income Tax Act be amended by the | deletion 6f the words (in Clause 1), I "at any time thereafter," and 'by the ; substitution therefor of the . words

"within twelve months from the date of such default."

That the Government be urged to proceed with the Companies Bill, 1922, provided that full opportunity be given for the taking of evidence thereon. That the provision under Section 166, Sub-section 2, of the Companies Act, 1908, requiring the full subscription of the original capital of a private company, be made applicable also to subsequent capital issues. That the Legislature Act be amended to place retailers in the same position as factories by removing the provision for compulsory closing on election day, but providing that employees be given reasonable time oif to vote. That whereas the statutory minimum wage is based upon the assumed requirements of a married man with two children, or equivalent dependents, whilst the responsibilities of three-fourths of the wage-earners are admittedly less than that assumed, Parliament be urged to insist upon the adoption of a more equitable standard.

? That with a view to in. the meantime modifying in some measure the disparity in the position of those with re-' sponsibilities and those without under present conditions, Parliament be urged to ,considef the advisability of reducing the present income-tax exemption, from £3OO to £2OO, subject to the usual exemption for dependents and insurance.

That the Bankruptcy Act be amended on the lines indicated in the report' of the special committee set up by the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, and that the Minister of Justice be once again pressed to meet the oft-repeated demands of the commercial community for- the revision of our bankruptcy legislation. That the Shops and Offices Act be amended to permit retailers to observe the usual Friday or late nights in Christmas and New Year weeks, as with two holidays occurring in each week, this could not be considered a hardship on the staffs. The following remit was lost: That the Government be urged to bring down legislation allowing gifts for the use of hospitals, the blind, asylums, national objects, and charitable institutions,, to an amount not exceeding 15 per cent, of the taxpayer's income, to be free of income-tax, and that legacies for- these specified purposes be free of death duties. Evening Session. At the evening session further resolutions were carried as follows: That the conference reaffirms the resolution of 1923 as to the carriage of goods, and.,urges upon the Government that it should have the law relating to the responsibility of carriers so amended as to provide that %vhen a carrier, or any person receiving from an overseas ship any packages for delivery to the consignee thereof, has acknowledged by a receipt that such a package was received in apparent good order and condition and delivers such a package to the consignee in other than apparent good order and condition, and when it is- found to have been . tampered with or pillaged, the production of bona fide invoices shall be prima facie evidence that the contents of the package were in accordance therewith at the time when the package was received from the ship. ; That tho conference considers that the time has arrived when the present rate of 2d upon cheques and receipts should cease and reversion be made to the pre-war penny duty.

That the conference is of opinion that the time has arrived when a sub-' staiitial reduction should be made in the telephone charges in view of the assurance' given by the Department that reductions would, be. considered should' a surplus result, and the fact .that the .1923-1924 receipts show' a considerable surplus over the anticipated increase. That thy conference affirms that the accounting system of the Post . ana Telegraph and other Departments should 'be reviewed so that accounts shall cleaily disclose the results of each branch separately ' ' ' . • That the Postmaster-General be asked to favourably consider the establishment of wireless telephones in New Zealand when considered

' That the Postmaster-General be reouested to institute in New Zealand the system operating in Great Britain by which the postal authorities under" take to collect before delivery the value of goods forwarded bv parcels post, and to remit the amount to the sender less a collection charge. That whereas a line of steamships', heavily subsidised by the New Zealand Government, has a name which does not in auv "way identify it with New Zealand and it' would greatly assist in advertising : the Dominion if the name' of that line featured New Zealand, this conference requests the Government to bring th? utmost. pressure to I'ear on the Canadian and Australasian iloyal Mail Line with a view to having it? name altered accordingly. That the-conference affirms the desire of the Chambers, of' Commerce to co-operato with Government in advancino; the interests.of the Dominion by securing further publicity abroad, and is of the opinion that-the sut> iect is of such importance that in the interests of the future welfare of. this country exnenditure in this direction should be reviewed to meet the evergrowing public demand for: greater publicity overseas for New Zealand. That with a view to the development of "a further market for our primary products and the establishment of the exchange of trade on sound reciprocal lines, this conference is of_ the opinion that it is advisable to have resident in Canada and the TTnited States practical trade commissioners who could act also as-tourist and miblieity officers. That following the" close, of the British Empire Exhibition concerted special measures should be taken to impress on British capitalists the Dominion's -potentialities for the investment of capital with a view to inducing their active participation in the institution and expansion of secondary industries and the working" of undeveloped resources within the Dominion. That His Majesty's Trade Commissioner in New Zealand be requested to co-operate in putting forward this suggestion. That the tourist, traffic be energetically developed by improving tourist resort accommodation, highways, and railways. j

Immigration. That the Dominion should adopt a well-considered and progressive policy to - secure a largely increased number of suitable immigrants annually from the United Kingdom, and that in order that this matter may be dealt with in an energetic manner, the Government be urged to set up a permanent Immigration Commission to work in conjunction with the Immigration Department, and, if necessary, to reorganise the New Zealand Immigration Department in England. The Commission would attend, to the following matters: (a) Arrange for regularly obtaining and disseminating information of the labour requirements of the primary and secondary industries of the Dominion; (b) report on the unoccupied lands in New Zealand available for settlement, and the amount of land held in large blocks, but. suitable for subdivision and- 1 extensive cultivation; (c) take advantage of the offer of assistance by the Imperial Government under . the Overseas Settlement Act; (d) organise a system which will effectively stand behind immigrants after their arrival during the first difficult period. That the Government be asked' to bring in a scheme for the more equit-

(Contiaued.afe foofc «f next column.)

able distribution of assisted immigrants; that they be given the option, before leaving the United Kingdom, of choosing any of the twelve principal boroughs of New Zealand or country contiguous thereto as their destination, and that there be no differentiation in the cost to the immigrants Eemits dealing with railway matters were discussed at length, but it was eventually decided, in view of the presence of the Eailway Commission in New Zealand, to refrain from passing any resolutions.