RAISING BARRIERS

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 360, 22 October 1932, Page 5

RAISING BARRIERS

("Post" Special Commissioner)

DRASTIC PROPOSALS MR. COATES CONDEMNS THE LABOUR PARTY'S ATTITUDE OBSTACLES NOT WANTED

Wellington, Friday. Dealing with the attitude of the Labour Party to the Ottawa agreements to-day the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates said the proposal to prohihit the importation of goods which New Zealand could manufaeture was most drastic. It went far beyond anything that could he aceomplished by tariffs. It was utterly at variance with the whole tenor of the Ottawa agreement and with accepted views in regard to trade to-day. Nearly everybody looked to the removal or lowering Of trade harriers as a way of " eseape. "The Leader of the Opposition proposes the opposite and to add new obstacles that would make all existing tariffs look trivial. Suppose all countries, and not New Zealand alone, were to follow the course suggested and were to shut out all goods which they can produce, external trade would be reduced to a fraction of its present volume. * "To develop its agriculture Britain's aim would be to shut out all such imports, including New Zealand products. The Ottawa agreement proceeded in the opposite direetioh. It proposed to remove barriers and to allow trade to move more freely. That this should he done was the opinion to which most people of all schools of thought suhscribed. It was some- ■ thing rare and exceptional to have • the view expressed for the New Zealand Labour Party that we should embark instead on new drastic prohibitions of trade. Is This Socialism "Is this the policy of the New Zealand Labour Party," asked Mr Coates. Is it socialism? When the world is in economic trouble and New Zealand is suffering with other countries -is it correct to say. that the Labour Party's plan is simply one of higher barriers to trade than have hitherto been reeeived? This is economic nationalism -with a vengeance, and while other countries are endeavouring to remove obstacles to trade the recom- - mendation of the Leader of the Opposition is that we should add more barriers than ever."