§ 124. Sir P. Hannonasked the President of the Board of Trade if he has considered the recent declaration by the Canadian Minister of Finance of his readiness to discuss with the Governments of the United Kingdom and the U.S.A. reciprocal trade arrangements wider in scope and longer in duration than have hitherto been made; and if action in the direction indicated is contemplated by His Majesty's Government.
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§ Mr. MarquandYes, Sir. The statement to which the hon. Member refers was made by the Canadian Minister of Finance in his 1943 Budget speech, and repeated in his 1944 Budget speech. Since then, as the hon. Member will be aware, the Government of the United States have published their proposals for consideration by an international conference on trade and employment with which His Majesty's Government are in full agreement on all important points; and a preparatory committee of the Economic and Social Council, which includes United Kingdom, Canadian, and United States representatives is now meeting in London to prepare for a full conference at which it is hoped to reach agreement on the reduction of trade barriers of all kinds and on other important matters affecting international trade.