British Experts Chosen

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 552, 3 January 1929, Page 9

British Experts Chosen

REPARATIONS COMMITTEE Two Men of Big Business British. Official 'Wireless. Reed. 11.25 a.ni. RUGBY, Wednesday. THE Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Winston Churchill, announces that the Government has nominated Sir Josiah Stamp and Lord Revelstoke as British members of the committee of experts to frame proposals for a settlement of the reparation problem. There will also be two deputy members, whose names will be announced later.

Sir Josiah Stamp is a well-known economist. He was the British representative on the committee under the presidency of General C. G. Dawes, which drew up the present scheme of reparations in 1924. Lord Revelstoke is a director of the Bank of England and a partner in the banking firm of Baring Brothers. In his eagerly-awaited report, Mr. Parker Gilbert, Agent-General for Reparations, says there is no question in the light of practical experience concerning the ability of Germany to provide the full amount of her standard contribution under the Dawes Plan. Mr. Gilbert lays stress on the great productivity of the revenues, and urges that Germany should spend less on herself. The time is approaching when more vigorous measures must be taken to keep Germany's expenditure within the limits available from her revenues. Undoubtedly there are reserve forces of taxation still available, to which recourse could be had if necessary. The report concludes by advocating the definite fixing of Germany’s reparation obligations, in order to remove an element of uncertainty from the economic life of all the countries interested.

Agent-General for Reparations, is described as unjustifiedly optimistic and giving a false impression. A Foreign Office official expressed the opinion that the report would be accepted as a Bible by the reparations experts and thus ruin Germany’s chances of obtaining a reduction of reparations. Mr. Gilbert has ignored the fact that the Dawes plan worked smoothly only because we borrowed abroad, thus increasingly mortgaging the national wealth. Likewise he has ignored that the plan rested on Germany’s maintaining a, surplus of exports over imports. Yet there is at present an estimated adverse balance of £125,000,000.

COMMITTEE OF EXPERTS POWERS OF THE DELEGATES EXISTING TREATY LIMITS (Australian and N.Z. Press Association) Reed. 9.5 a.m. PARIS, Wednesday. The President, M. Poincare, told the Cabinet that he had informed the reparations delegates that they had liberty to sign a six-Power agreement but not one outside the limits of existing treaties. “Pertinax,” writing in “L’Echo de Paris,” declares that the presence of Americans on the reparations committee will be merely a hindrance because they are bound to back the American bankers who have lent Germany £450,000,000 since 1924, while Britain, being anxious to announce the evacuation of the Rhineland before the elections, will prevent France from insisting on the evacuation being dependent on a satisfactory settlement of reparation payments.