22 JANUARY 1937, Page 2

Anglo-Canadian Trade In the speech from the Throne at the

opening of the Canadian Parliament last week, the Governor-General, Lord Tweedsmuir, was able to announce that the Govern- ment had reached an agreement in principle with the United Kingdom on the renewal of the Anglo-Canadian trade pact. This puts an end to the anxiety aroused in some quarters by the delay in bringing to a conclusion the negotiations which were begun last summer. It was thought that Canada hesitated to make concessions which might be useful as a bargaining weapon with the United States ; on the other hand, it is probable that Mr. Runciman's visit to America, which, it is hoped, may be the preliminary to an Anglo-American trade agreement, has had an effect in bringing the conversations with Canada to a head. Mr. Mackenzie King, the Liberal Prime Minister, has often enunciated the principles which Le wishes to apply to Anglo-Canadian trade. A new agreement should be a move towards free trade ; it should give the United Kingdom a fairer bargain than she secured under the Ottawa agreements ; and -it should operate by reducing tariffs on United Kingdom products rather than by raising them on those of other countries. If the new agreement embodies this principle, it is assured of a grateful welcome in this country.

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