The financial resolutions required for the Bill for safeguarding certain
"key industries" were hotly debated in the House of Commons on Tuesday. Major Barnes's amendment limiting the duration of the Bffi to three years instead of five was rejected by 203 votes to 81. A proposal to reduce the duty on the protected articles from 331. per cent. to 10 per cent, was rejected by 244 votes to 79. Another amendment to omit optical glass from the list was defeated by 209 votes to 70. We notice, how- ever, that Mr. A. Samuel, in defending the optical glass trade, admitted that the proposed duty would be too small. Mr. France aptly retorted that, if that were true, the Government had better undertake the production of the glass required for range-finders and other instruments just as they undertook the building of battleships. A subsidy of fixed amount to such an industry would probably cost far less than the proposed tariff and would not interfere with trade.
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