Britain Publishes Report on Palestine Status to League Commission

(Jewish Telegraphic Agency)

The report of the British Government as the Mandatory Power for Palestine, submitted to the Permanent Mandates Commission of the League of Nations has just been made public here.

Palestine in 1927 suffered from financial stress, seriously affecting the Jewish settlement, the report states. This was aggravated by drought and the earthquake.

Public security was maintained in the country and the administrative reforms continued. There is no financial crisis in the country, but early improvement in the financial situation is improbable. During the next few years, the government faces the problem of how, without overburdening the people, to find the means to maintain an efficient administration and public security and meet its debts.

The Zionist subscription funds and private capital influx were smaller in connection with the decrease in Jewish immigration, because the latter stimulates Zionist enthusiasm everywhere. Nevertheless, further restriction of immigration is necessary because Palestine cannot absorb so many and there are not sufficient supplies available for the population’s economic needs. The large immigration caused a rise in immovable property values and increased the cost of settling Jews and an abnormally high outlay of Jewish private capital investments.

The subsequent adjustment of the local supply and demand, resulted in a general decline in values, tighter cred-it and harder new investments Nevertheless, Zionism has already achieved remarkable results. It is wrong to suppose that the economic progress, which was well aided by Jewish enterprise and capital, has been retarded, as the export values were greatly above those of 1926. For the first time since the war, more agricultural products were exported than imported. The orange area was almost doubled during the last four years, soap, flour and cement industries were expanded and increased their exports.

The tobacco industry is flourishing. Twenty new companies were incorporated and thirty new cooperatives registered. The quality of the agricultural products has improved.

The Zionist schools have been stressing Hebrew and unduly retard or accelerate other subjects. Their English is usually below the proper standard.

No unemployed Jew became a public charge directly, the report declares, as the Jewish Agency distributed an average of £7,000 monthly for unemployment relief.