DUTY ON FRUIT

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 57, 30 November 1937, Page 6

DUTY ON FRUIT

No Likelihood of Reduction By Britain MR. A. L. BURKE'S 0PINI0N ''It will be a very big surprise to me if the British Government agrees to a reduction in the duty on fruit,"' said Mr A. L. Burke, representative of Messrs J. and H. Goodwins Ltd., of London ,last night, when discussing the proposed Anglo-American Trade Treaty. Mr Burke contended that if there was a reduction in the duty, then it would hit the Home grower to an even greater extent than it would the New Zealand and Australian, for the American crap came in during the. peak, or near peak, of the season in the ' Old Country, 'while it was more or less at the beganning or end of the Empire season. "No, I don't think you will see any reduction .in the fruit duty," he reiterated. ' 'I would remind you that this year not only your Minister of Finance, the Hon Walter Nash, but representatives from Australia and Soutk Africa and other parts of the Empire, urged the British Government to give consideration to an increased duty. "While they did not get any encouragement in that respect," he said, "1 feel sure that they were given some assurance that it would not be reduced. I can say, from fairly reliable inforoiation, that the Government, at one stage, was seriously eonsidering increasing the duty, not reducing it. " Questioned regarding the shipments of American apples to the United Eingdom about the time that the New Zealand season opened on tbat market, Mr Burke said that the shipments were normal trade transactions, and he did not believe that thev were made with any malicious intention, as suggested by one speaker, of upsetting the New Zealand market. The shipment almost exclusively was surplus stoek which the grower had not been able to dispose of-on his home or usual markets, and was taken in hand by packing houses and speculators in the hope of finding some other outlot that would net a profit. It was a foreed mopement and aetually the product wag sold at a dead loss insofar as the grower was concerned.