VIOLENT DEBATE

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVII, Issue 180, 1 July 1937, Page 9

VIOLENT DEBATE

FRENCH FINANCIAL BILL. PASSAGE THROUGH CHAMBER. EXPECTED TAX INCREASES. (United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.) - PARIS, June 30. The Clinm her adopted the Financial Bill by 374 votes to 206. It now goes to the Senate. When the session of the Chamber resumed last evening, M. Schmidt, recorder for the Finance Commission, stated that the Government’s financial proposals had the full support of the United States and Britain. It is believed that the Government contemplates a fall from 110 to 125 francs to the pound. M. Schmidt also said that the Government proposed to increase the inconn- tax, certain indirect taxation and railway rates. Another short suspension of the sitting in the early hours this morning resulted in uproar, in which Communist and Right Wing deputies participated. ' \\ hen its resumed, M. Bonnet said : “I am determined to balance the Budget before the end of the year.” He insisted that France no longer had a choice ol various solutions. She must give the present Cabinet full powers to stop the drain of gold from the country. “Tho maintenance of European peace depends on a strong France, and to he strong France must have healthy finances,” he added. M. Bonnet is reported to have told the Finance Committee that he will meet the Treasury obligations during the year at least partly by raising the upper limit of the Government’s current account with the Ba> t of I'ranee by £100,600,000 to £150,uu0,000. He said the ordinary Budget showed a deficit of £70,000,000 which would be covered bv new taxation. It is regarded as certain that the Government wishes to be able to devalue the franc further if necessary. 'The Bank of France announces that pending the decision of Parliament it lias suspended ail exchange operations The Chamber was suspended at 1.30 a.m. owing to Communist disorder. The Deputies immediately raced to the re-fieshment-rooni where angry arguments culminated in fist fighting between the Communists and Right \\ ing Deputies who were separated by the Sergeant-at-Arms. When the Chamber resumed at 2 a.m. the Right Wing members demanded the suspension of the Communist fighters. This caused pandemonium with the Dtvuties screaming insults at each other. Feeling rail so high that M. Herriot again suspended the sitting.

SENATE ADOPTS BILL. SPEED AGAINST SOCIALISTS. Received July 1, 10.35 a.m. PARIS, June 30. The Senate adopted the Finance Bill by 167 votes to 82 after the Finance Commission had unconditionally accepted it by ‘2O votes to 3. Shouts in the Senate of “Post it” greeted the explanation by M. Abel Gardey, the commission’s rapporteur, of why the Senate had refused the Socialist, M. Blum, full powers, but had granted them to the Radical, M. Cliautemps. “l'ost it” means that under the law of affichage the speech will be placarded on every town hall and public hoarding, but. though a show of hands favoured triis, M. Caillaux secured the suspension of the sitting to decide the question, the motion having so incensed the Socialists that M. Auriol (former Finance Minister) and several of his colleagues left the Chamber. M. Gardey’s speech amounted to a funeral oration on the Popular Front. He argued that M. Blum would have used his plenary powers for coercion and nationalisation instead of national recovery. , , , Later M. Gardey testified to how touched he was by the compliment of posting his motion, but as it might create a fresh Parliamentary conflict he begged that the Senate cancel the decision. After consultation this was done.

FRANC MAY GO TO 135. PARIS, June 30. Financial circles anticipate that the franc will be allowed to fall to between 130 and 135 to the pound and i later suddenly brought back to 125, thus confounding speculators and en'couraging the repatriation of French j capital. | The Finance Committee of the Senate adopted the Government’s Bill by 20 to three. There were ten absentions. GOLD VALUE OF FRANC. TO BE FIXED LATER. Received July 1. 1.15 p.m. PARIS, June 30. The Bourse will reopen to-morrow. The decree replacing the Monetary Act, 1936, which brought the last devaluation of the franc into effect, says: “The gold value of the franc will be fixed later. The relation of the franc to foreign currencies will be regulated by the stabilisation fund until the conditions of the convertibility of Bank of France notes into gold are decided. The franc, therefore, is being unpegged from gold and will follow the pound in finding its own level and will not be convertible into gold at any fixed level.” AMERICAN POLICY. WASHINGTON, June 30. At the conclusion of the conferences between President Roosevelt and M. van Zeeland (Premier of Belgium) the following joint communique wa sissued : “Within the framework of traditional American policy it was the disposition of the United States to co-operate in the joint work of rebuilding international trade, to continue co-operation in monetary matters and seek an arrangement by which the burdens and dangers of overwhelming armaments could he reduced or the methods ol their employment safeguarded.” President Roosevelt commented that the conversations had been most helpful.