Sir GILBERT PARKERasked the Prime Minister whether salaries were to be paid to the members of the Commission to inquire into the trade resources of the Empire; who were to be the personnel of the staff, and what salaries they were to be paid; and whether their whole time was to be given to the services of the Commission?
§ The SECRETARY of STATE for the COLONIES (Mr. Harcourt)No salaries will be paid to the United Kingdom Commissioners, but their travelling expenses will be paid, and they will have a subsistence allowance when absent from the United Kingdom. The secretary of the Commission will be Mr. W. A. Robinson, of the Colonial Office, who was Assistant Secretary to the Imperial Conferences of 1907 and 1911. Other arrangements are still under consideration.
Sir GILBERT PARKERAre the Governments of the Oversea Dominions 1280 to contribute at all to the expenses of the Commission?
§ Mr. HARCOURTIn accordance with the offer made by the representatives of the Dominions at the Conference, they will pay the whole of the expenses of their own Commissioners, and contribute a proportion of the expenses of the Secretariat.
Sir GILBERT PARKERasked whether Lord Inchcape, a member of the Imperial Trade Commission, would retain his position as a Suez Canal director while serving on the Commission?
§ Mr. HARCOURTLord Inchcape holds his appointment as a director of the Suez Canal from the company. I am unable to say whether his colleagues on the board will give him the leave of absence required to enable him to carry out the public duty which he has undertaken, but I understand it is customary in such circumstances to grant the necessary leave.
Sir GILBERT PARKERHas the Government satisfied itself as to the members of the Commission representing the greatest experience and impartiality—
§ Mr. SPEAKERThat does not arise out of the question.
§ Mr. SPEAKERThis question relates to only one member.
§ Mr. SPEAKERThat has been answered.
Sir GILBERT PARKERasked the Prime Minister if he could state what the terms of reference to the Imperial Trade Commission would be; when the Commission was to start; and at what point in the Empire they would begin their inquiries?
§ Mr. HARCOURTThe terms of reference proposed, with which all the Governments concerned have concurred, are as follows:—
"To inquire into and report upon the natural resources of the Dominion of Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, the Dominion of New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, and the Colony of Newfoundland; and, further, to report upon the development of such resources, 1281 whether attained or attainable; upon the facilities which exist or may be created for the production, manufacture, and distribution of all articles of commerce in those parts of the Empire; upon the requirements of each such part and of the United Kingdom in the matter of food and raw materials, and the available sources of such; upon the trade of each such part of the Empire with the other parts, with the United Kingdom, and with the rest of the world; upon the extent, if any, to which the mutual trade of the several parts of the Empire has been or is being affected beneficially or otherwise by the laws now in force, other than fiscal laws, and, generally, to suggest any methods, consistent always with the existing fiscal policy of each part of the Empire, by which the trade of each part with the others and with the United Kingdom might be improved and extended."
The Commission will commence its labours as soon as the preliminary arrangements can be completed, and with no avoidable delay. It will itself decide the third point raised in the question.
§ Mr. HARRY LAWSONAre fiscal laws to be excluded so far as the Mother-country is concerned?
§ Mr. HARCOURTThat was the decision of the Imperial Conference.
Sir GILBERT PARKERConsidering the careful selection of the Members of the Commission by the overseas Dominions, does the right hon. Gentleman think that those members chosen by this Government are the best suited by impartiality and experience to inquire into the subjects included in the terms of reference?
§ Mr. HARCOURTI certainly think that the members selected to serve for the United Kingdom are the best fitted by impartiality and experience that could possibly have been obtained.
Sir GILBERT PARKERI beg to give notice that at the earliest opportunity I shall call attention to the composition of the Commission.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTCan the right hon. Gentleman explain why India was omitted from the terms of reference?
§ Mr. HARCOURTBecause the Commission was constituted by the Imperial 1282 Conference to inquire only into the resources of the Dominions represented at that Conference.
§ Mr. HEWINSDoes the decision of the Imperial Conference authorise an alteration of existing fiscal legislation?
§ Mr. HARCOURTThe intention of the Conference was well known to the Prime Minister and myself, who were members of the Conference, and we have drafted, in consultation and concurrence with the Dominions, the reference, which follows as closely as possible the terms of the Resolution of the Imperial Conference.
Sir GILBERT PARKERAre we to understand that inquiry may be made into the fiscal relations between separate parts of the overseas Dominions, though not between the overseas Dominions and this country, in relation to the development of the resources of the Empire?
§ Mr. HARCOURTI think I cannot—certainly without notice—go beyond the terms of reference.
§ Mr. HEWINSArising out of that—
§ Mr. SPEAKERWe have already had six or seven supplementary questions; any others should be put down.