Britain's Position Over Canadian Wheat

Chronicle (Levin), 15 November 1949, Page 5

Britain's Position Over Canadian Wheat

LONDON j Nov. 13. Britain wonld be bound to reduce drastically her imports of wheat from Canada under the new cohtraet unlessi Canada could be persuaded to beeome at lCast partially a sterling eountfy, said Mr Richard Crossman, Labohr member of Parliament, in an interview today. He said Britain would have had to default on her Canadian wheat coutract this year if Ihe United States— which has a weat surplus — had not allowed the use of Marshall Aid dollars tor Canadian wheat. "This means, in plain language that America is paying the Canadians to give us whfiat; It i& nbt rChSbiiabld to ask the Amerioans to discriminate against their dwn ffirrnCfS. if Britain is to denland that Candda take sterlihg for any part of our payments we must give expdrts to Cauada infinitely highef priority than now." Mr Crossman added that the Canadian dollar export drive was more, important than the drive for American dollars. Colonel George Wigg, another Labour mdmber bf Parliament, said that if Canada wanted to sell wheat to Britain she would have to take sterling, othefwise Britain could not buy. The Sunddy newspaper the ObsCfver today said there was a godd deal of nonsense in the argument for forcing Canada. into ^the sterliiig arda^ and a "good deal of nastiness in the attempt to push our own problems oh to the Canadians who, sinee the war, have been exceptionaily generous to this country despitfe Mr Strkchey's inereasing elforts to buy from everyone except them. " The Observer added that most probably the result of the eainpaign would be to drive Canada into another closer economic association with the United States.