The allied and imperial conferences and British trade policy plans during the First World War

Abstract

This paper examines British trade policy plans during the First World War with special reference to the links with the Economic Conference of the Allies, the Imperial War Conference, and the Imperial War Cabinet. As regards the former conference, the British government rejected the Clementel plan to form an Allied economic bloc through the joint control of raw materials and preferential tariffs. Their alternative plan had two elements. One was the assumption that Britain could not discriminate against neutral countries because of the size and importance of trade links with them, by comparison to links with the Allies. The other was the protection of essential industries for which Britain had depended upon Germany before the war. By the time the latter took place, international conditions had changed. The various governments of the British empire agreed to refuse preferential imperial tariffs for foodstuffs. Britain was therefore able to pursue non-discriminatory trade policies within the empire, and with both allied and neutral countries. We can therefore conclude that the British government made wartime trade policy plans which were based on a 'third' path. This combined the protection of essential industries and open empire policy, instead of the 'Imperial Expansion' or 'Imperial Zollverein' line.