PREFERENCE.

Hokitika Guardian, 13 February 1925, Page 2

PREFERENCE.

SPEECH BY AIR AMERY. AUSTRALIAN ANI) N.Z. CABLE ASSOCIATION UOXJAON, February 10. Air Amery, Secretary of State for the Colonies, speaking at the. Colonial Institute, appealed to financiers and business men to use their power to bring profits to the Empire. lie compared the growth of the Empire, in which effort was dissipated, with that of the United State,s which concentrated its whole energies upon development. Hccontendcd that what the United. States had done the Empire could do.

Air Amery urged Britishers to give deliberate prelercn c to Empire products.

‘■’l here is only one way out ot the vicious circle of high costs involving unemployment. Namely, the construction of the whole economic .system on the broad foundation of Empire cooperation. Wo have reached the poii when the great idea ol Empire development transplanting in the terms of a great policy. Ihe economic ,u tiviiics of Great Britain have been dissipated lor three generations in building up I'nited States, Argentine, and European competitors while contributing only incidentally to the growth of our own Empire.

Mr Amery gave instances indicating the failure of the Empire as compared with the United .states. The tjotul population engaged in agriculture here and in the Dominions was under three millions, or less than half the agricultural population of France, and onethird that of the United States. The key to the whole position was the power of the market which we possessed in a unique degree.

“Settlers will not cross oceans in older to grow produce which they cannot «ell.” lie said. “We cannot claim to he iii earnest so lung as we are not prepared to concentrate the power of the market on Empire development. The unreasoning prejudice regardin preferential duties constitutes an add tional reason for effective alternative action.”