CARTOON - EMPIRE PREFERENCE

1929
Overview

Scene of two men in a park. The man on the left is tall and inviting the man next to him to move off the path onto the grass. The second man is holding his hat and looking at the other man as he moves towards the grass. There are two signs on the grass both reading [KEEP OFF / THE GRASS]. Written across the grass is the word Empire Preferences but most of the word is obscured by the taller figure. Written on the path that the figures are standing on is [McKENNA DUTIES] There is a small dog in the bottom left corner barking at the two men
Ben Strange Signature bottom right.
The cartoon was published in the Western Mail on 25 July 1929 with the caption:
The Adventures
In a recent speech in the British House of Commons the Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr. P. Snowden) in the McDonald Cabinet supported the repeal of the McKenna duties and attacked Imperial preferential tariffs. In subsequent voting which turned upon the Government's trade intention, the MacDonald Government received solid Liberal backing.
RAMSAY MACDONALD TO DAVID LLOYD GEORGE: DO YOU THINK ANOTHER LITTLE STEP WILL DO US ANY HARM, DAVID?

Historical information

The McKenna duties refer to a 331/3 percent levy Reginald McKenna, the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Asquith coalition government, placed in 1915 on all luxury goods imported into Great Britain to help fund the war effort.
The levy remained until 1925 when Philip Snowden the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour McDonald Government removed them, only for the levy to be reinstated in 1925 after Ramsay MacDonald lost government in October 1924.
Ramsay and Snowden regained government in 1929 by forming a coalition with the Liberal Party led by Lloyd George. McDonald and Snowden needed Lloyds support to revoke the 'McKenna Duties' as demonstrated in this cartoon. The McDonald Government were proponents of free trade and not giving preferential trade to Commonwealth countries. The Australia government expressed its regrets that moves were made to remove the McKenna Duties and the preferential trade agreements to commonwealth nations.
In 1930 Snowden presented his governments budget which included the retention of the McKenna Duties.

Details

Details

Registration number
cwa-org-33-AK1999.105
Material
Inscriptions and markings

Artist's signature bottom right [Ben Strange]

Year
Statement of significance

HIGH
The Ben Strange cartoons are historically significant as they depict many key figures linked to the history and development of both Western Australia and Australia. Political figures who regularly appeared in his cartoon’s included John ‘Happy Jack’ Scaddan, the Premier of Western Australia from 1911 until 1916, and William ‘Billy’ Hughes, the Prime Minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923.

Primary significance criteria
Artistic or aesthetic significance
Historic significance
Social or spiritual significance
Comparative significance criteria
Object’s condition or completeness
Rare or representative
Well provenanced
City of Armadale - History House

City of Armadale - History House

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