regulation of imports without the imposition of a duty. In order to implement these undertakings the Ottawa Agreements Act, 1932, was passed on 15th November, 1932. Reciprocal benefits accorded to the United Kingdom by other contracting Governments of the Commonwealth included the grant of increased tariff preferences (either by the lowering of duties on United Kingdom goods, or the increase of duties on foreign goods); provisions in certain cases with regard to the holding of enquiries by Tariff Boards, or otherwise, prior to the increase of any duty on United Kingdom goods, and to the rights of audience for United Kingdom producers at such enquiries; and acceptance of the principle that, subject to special consideration in the case of industries not fully established, protective duties should not exceed such a level as would give United Kingdom producers full opportunity of reasonable competition on the basis of the relative cost of economical and efficient production. A list showing the trade agreements entered into between Governments of the Commonwealth other than the United Kingdom appears on page 62 of Cmd. 4175. No agreement was concluded at Ottawa between the United Kingdom and the Irish Free State on account of the differences between the two Governments which had arisen earlier in the year in relation to the Treaty settlement of 1921, with the consequence that goods from the Irish Free State ceased from 15th November, 1932, to enjoy the Conference. preferential rates provisionally granted by the Import Duties Act. Agreements were, however, concluded between the Irish Free State Position of Irish Free State in relation to the Ottawa and Canada and the Union of South Africa. Work of the ing Board, In 1931 the limitation of the Empire Marketing Board's Vote to the furtherance of marketing "in the United Kingdom" was removed with effect from the 1st April, 1931, and the Board became thus empowered to further the marketing of Empire products in any part of the world. The Empire Market- Board's Vote for that year was £490,000. In 1932 the Board's 1930-32. annual Vote was further reduced to £300,000, and the position and activities of the Board were considered at the Ottawa Conference in July, 1932, in the light of conclusions there reached on the subject of Imperial Preference. It was arranged that the future of the Board, as of other organs of Imperial co-operation, should be reviewed by a special Empire Committee which should meet in London in 1933, and that meantime His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom should furnish the necessary resources for the continuance of the Board's essential work to the end of September, 1933.* Resident Commonwealth of Australia in London. In 1932, the Right Honourable S. M. Bruce, Minister in the Minister of the Commonwealth Government, was appointed to act as Resident Minister in London, discharging amongst other duties the functions ordinarily exercised by the High Commissioner for the Commonwealth. On accepting appointment in 1933 as High Commissioner for the Commonwealth, he relinquished the appointment of Resident Minister in London, and ceased to be a member of the Commonwealth Government. See on page lxxxvii, under heading of Imperial Committee on Economic Consultation and Co-operation, 1933. See page xciii regarding the Trade Agreement concluded in 1938. Following on President Hoover's offer of a year's moratorium as from the 1st July, 1931, to the debtors of the United States and the decision of His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom to suspend for a similar period Reparations inter-governmental debts due to them, His Majesty's Government and Debts. offered a similar suspension to those of the Dominions which were indebted to the United Kingdom in respect of war obligations, namely the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa and Newfoundland. The offer was accepted by the Commonwealth, New Zealand and Newfoundland, and has been renewed and accepted for the period which has elapsed since the Hoover year expired. His Majesty's Government in the Union of South Africa generously decided not to avail themselves of the offer to suspend payment and on the 31st August, 1934, they repaid the balance of the outstanding debt then amounting to £7,500,000. All of the Dominions entitled to a share of German reparation payments agreed to forgo such receipts during the Hoover year and subsequently up to the present date. Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand and the Union of South Africa were represented at the Lausanne Conference which met in June, 1932, to consider the Reparation question, and were parties to the agreements negotiated at the Conference (see Cmd. 4126). The United Kingdom, the Dominions Members of the League of Nations and In 1933 the appointment was made of a Consul (subsequently raised to ConsulGeneral) for the Union of South Africa, at Hamburg. The French and German Consuls-General in the Union of South Africa were accredited to the and consular Union Government as Chargés d'Affaires in 1933 and 1934 respectively. Diplomatic representation of the Dominions in foreign countries. (See pp. lxxix and lxxxiii) In 1934 a considerable extension took place of the diplomatic representation of the Union of South Africa. Legations were established at Paris, Berlin, Lisbon, Stockholm, and Brussels, the last three being under the charge of the Ministers at Paris, Berlin, and The Hague respectively. In 1935, an Irish Free State Legation was established at Madrid and a Spanish Legation at Dublin. At the end of 1936 a Belgian Legation was established at Ottawa. In accordance with the recommendation of the Imperial Economic Conference, 1932 (see (5) of page lxxxv), a Committee to consider the means of facilitating economic consultation and co-operation within the Empire met in Imperial Committee on London in February, 1933. Representatives of the United Kingdom, Economic Consultation the Dominions, Southern Rhodesia and the Colonial Empire partiand Co.opera- cipated. The report of the Conference which was unanimous was communicated to the Governments concerned and was subsequently published as Cmd. 4335. It laid down a number of general principles in regard to the future organisation of agencies for inter-Imperial consultation and co-operation, made certain specific recommendations in regard to certain tion, 1933. existing inter-Imperial scientific and economic services and activities, and recommended that the question of what research activities should in future be carried out co-operatively should be considered in the first instance by the Executive Council of the Imperial Agricultural Bureaux and subsequently by a Conference of the administrative and scientific heads of national research organisa. tions and departments and of such other persons as the several Governments might select. The report was considered at a meeting in London at the end of July of representatives of the Governments of the United Kingdom, Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, the Irish Free State and India, who accepted generally the Committee's recommendations. As a result of the acceptance by the several Governments of the recommendations in the Committee's report the Empire Marketing Board, as such, was disbanded with effect from the 30th September, 1933. Certain of the economic and statistical services carried on by the Board, viz.: (1) periodical market intelligence notes and (2) world surveys of production and trade, were transferred to the Imperial Economic Committee which, together with the Imperial Shipping Committee, has from the 1st October, 1933, onwards, been financed by the several Governments of the Commonwealth jointly, instead of as before, by His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom alone. As regards research activities hitherto carried on by the Board, the Executive Council of the Imperial Agricultural Bureaux, to whom the question was referred in accordance with the recommendation of the Committee referred to above, recommended that certain of these should in future be continued on a similar basis of joint finance. In accordance with the recommendation of the Imperial Conference, 1930, endorsed by the Imperial Economic Conference, 1932, and by the Imperial Committee on Economic Consultation and Co-operation, 1933, a Conference of British Commonwealth Statisticians was held Statisticians, at Ottawa from the 13th September to the 19th October, 1935, and Conference of British Commonwealth 1935. was attended by representatives of the United Kingdom, Canada. Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, the Irish Free State, India, and Newfoundland. The United Kingdom and the Dominions were represented at the Monetary and Economic Conference which was held in London in 1933, under the auspices of the League of Nations. On the adjournment of the Conference a Declaration was issued in the names of the Commonwealth Delega. tions (other than that of the I.F.S.) putting on record their views on some of the more important matters of financial and monetary policy which were raised but not decided at the Conference (Cmd. 4403). Monetary and 1933. The International Wheat Conference, the convention of which in August, 1933. was one of the results of the Monetary and Economic Conference was held in Wheat Conference, 1933. London under the Chairmanship of Mr. Bennett. Prominent parts were taken by the representatives of both Canada and the Commonwealth of Australia in the discussion between the producing countries which preceded the Conference, as well as at the Conference itself, which resulted in an agreement upon the policy to be adopted both by producing and importing countries with the object of securing an improved price for wheat. The principal event during the year 1935 was the occurrence on the 6th of May of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the accession of King George V. Invitations were addressed to the Prime Ministers of the Dominions and Southern Rhodesia to attend the celebrations in London. The Prime Ministers of Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa and Southern Rhodesia attended. The opportunity was taken to arrange for private and informal discussions with the Dominion Prime Ministers of matters of common concern, in particular in relation to foreign policy, but no official statement as to the course of the discussions was published. The King's Silver Jubilee, 1935. A Naval Conference opened in London in December, 1935, between the powers which had participated in the London Naval Conference of 1930. The London The Dominions were represented by their respective High Commisference, 1935. sioners in London. The Treaty which resulted from the Conference in 1936 was signed on behalf of the United Kingdom, Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand and India. Naval Con High Com Action upon the decision to appoint a High Commissioner in the Commonwealth of Australia for His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, missioner for which was announced in 1931 (see p. lxxxii), was deferred during the the United Kingdom in ensuing period of financial stringency. It was announced in August, Australia. 1935, that Sir Geoffrey Whiskard, K.C.M.G., C.B., had been appointed to this post and that he would take up his appointment early in 1936. In accordance with the recommendations of the Imperial Committee on Economic Consultation and Co-operation, (1933 see Cmd. 4335 and page lxxxvii), a British Commonwealth Scientific Conference met in London in September and October, 1936. Representatives of the United Kingdom, the Dominions, India, Southern Rhodesia and the Colonial Empire participated. The Report of the Conference was published as Cmd. 5341. The Conference made a number of recommendations upon projects involving co-operation and collaboration in scientific research within the Empire and particularly upon the organizations controlled by the Executive Council of the Imperial Agricultural Bureaux (see pp. xxvii et seq.). Amongst the most important of these was a recommendation for the provision for a further five years from the 1st April, 1937, of contributions to the eight agricultural Bureaux and the Institutes of Entomology and Mycology. It also recommended the establishment of two new Bureaux-of Dairy Science and Forestry-and the convening of a similar Conference between July and September, 1941. British Com- In accordance with advice tendered by the respective Governments, the King approved, in July, 1936, the appointment of a Coronation ComThe mission to consist of representatives of the United Kingdom, Canada, Coronation Commission. the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand and the Union of South Africa to meet in London for the purpose of considering those aspects of the arrangements for the Coronation which are of common concern. The following statement explanatory of the appointment was issued from Buckingham Palace : "It has been felt that the traditional procedure for making arrangements for the Coronation Ceremony needs to be supplemented, in view of the present constitutional position, in order to provide suitable machinery for co-operation between the King's several Governments. "The actual Ceremony takes place, of course, in the United Kingdom, and the matters solely affecting the United Kingdom, on which decisions are required, and executive action must be taken, will be dealt with by the Coronation Committee of the Privy Council and its Executive Committee which have already been set up. "At the same time, in order to recognise the equal interest of the Dominions with the United Kingdom in those aspects of the Coronation which are of general concern, and with the object of harmonising ancient tradition with modern constitutional requirements, the King, as announced to-day, has appointed a special Coronation Commission to consider those aspects." Conference, 1937 (Cmd. 5482). Subjects considered. Advantage was taken of the presence of the Dominion Prime Ministers in London for the Coronation of His Majesty King George VI to hold an Imperial Conference, which was opened on the 14th May, 1937, two days after Imperial the Coronation ceremony. In the report of the Conference reference was made to the significance of the Coronation ceremony and the adoption of a revised form of the Coronation Oath, as marking the recognition of the principles underlying the British Commonwealth of Nations (pages 9-10 of Cmd. 5482). The main subjects dealt with by the Conference were foreign affairs and defence. Consideration was also given to the following: certain constitutional questions; a general review of the progress of Empire trade; Colonial affairs; questions arising in connection with shipping policy, including a review of the work of the Imperial Shipping Committee; civil air communications; certain other economic questions, viz., the work of the Imperial Economic Committee and a proposal for the establishment of an Empire Agricultural Council; New Hebrides and Polar questions. In the sphere of foreign affairs a series of meetings of Principal Delegates was devoted to the consideration of various aspects of this subject under the three Foreign Defence. heads of the general international situation including the League of Nations; the European situation; and the Pacific and the Far East. A full and frank discussion took place and the Conference recorded the results of its deliberations on foreign affairs in the statement given on pages 14, 15 and 16 of Cmd. 5482. The Conference gave close attention to the subject of defence and considered ways in which it would be possible for the Governments concerned to co-operate in measures for their own security. The discussions began with a review of the events which led up to the adoption by His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom of their rearmament programme, and included a detailed review of the state of defence in each of the countries represented at the Conference. Attention was given to the advantages attending co-operation in the production and supply of munitions and raw materials, as well as of food and feeding stuffs. Questions of mutual interest in this connection were examined by a committee and the Conference recommended that the interchange of detailed technical information on such questions should be continued between the technical officers of the Governments concerned. A statement regarding the defence discussions of the Conference is given on pages 16 to 20 of Cmd. 5482. |