CANADA'S PART

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 60, Issue 251, 31 July 1940, Page 6

CANADA'S PART

HUGE DEFENCE PROGRAMME. EVERY CLASS OF WAR MATERIAL GREAT EXPANSE OF FACTORIES. (United Press Association. —Copyright.) (Received This Day, 1.30 p.m.) OTTAWA, July 30. The Minister of Transport (Mr C. D. Howe) said in the House of Commons that Canadian factories were expected to turn out 360 aeroplanes and 30 tanks a month early in 1941. Eight lactoiies were working on orders for 3200 ’planes, of which 257 had been delivered. The contracts involved 110,000,000 dollars. A, programme lor further production, materially increasing the output, was being discussed between Canada and Britain. Canada was at present producing 600 mechanised units daily, for which Canadian orders alone represented 54,500,000 dollars. Britain, India and South Africa were buying largely. British orders for Canadian tanks'totalled 63,000,000 dollars. Canada was rapidly achieving a selfcontained navy and 14,000 men were employed in the shipyards and associated industries. Before the end of the year 28 anti-submarine vessels and five minesweepers would be completed. The programme provided for 54 anti-sub-marine vessels for the Canadian navy and 10 for the Royal Navy, with 28 minesweepers for Canada. Mr Howe said that Canada was experimenting in the manufacture of aeroplane instruments and metal propellers, but had decided not to attempt engines. In Canada recently machine tools had been produced at a volume challenging the imagination. The production of manufactured goods was the largest in history, but was small compared with the construction involving a capital cost of 120,000,000 dollars. Canada would have a productive capacity of 500,000,000 dollars annually. Tire munitions programme involved the manufacture of Lee Enfields, Brens, Colts and Brownings, aircraft machine-guns and sub-machine-guns, two-pounder anti-aircraft guns*, 25pounder quiclifirers, 40-millimetre Bofors, anti-tank guns, 3.7 anti-aircraft guns, anti-tank rifles and 20millimetro Hispano-Suiza. aircraft cannon. A very large gun plant, manufacturing 25-pounders and heavy naval guns, involving a capital investment of 10,000,000 dollars would .be producing before the end of the year. Now 14 plants were producing shells, .including four-millimeter shells, 18 and 25-pounder, 3.7, 4.5, 6 and 9.2 inch shells. The total of ammunition orders was 69,000,000 dollars, of which 9,000,000 was capital expenditure. Orders were being immediately increased by 33,000,000 dollars involving the production of several million shells.

Orders for small arm,s ammunition made a total of 19,000,000 dollars. The explosives plants would begin in. September producing TNT, nitrocellulose and rifle cordite. The capital investment in these plants would bo 31,000,000. A plant was being constructed for the manufacture of optical glass giunsight predictors, etc., and the production of aluminium was being doubled.

The operation of the entire programme was in the hands of the Allied War Supplies Corporation, which was operating secondary, chemical and other industries incidental to tine l programme and 'would thus be responsible for the administration of new capital investments totalling 110,000,000 dollars. Mr Howe added that general buying, including clothing, food and equipment for troops, totalled 245,000,000 dollars, of which 21:7,000,000 would be spent m Canada, 22,000,000 in the United Kingdom and 6,700,000 in the United States. . Ninety per cent, of the air scheme facilities had been completed. An extension of the: original plan was under consideration, increasing the programme to 120 separate projects, ol which 77 were being built, and requiring 47 new aerodromes and extensions to 30 existing airports. It was anticipated that the) cost of 77, already approved, Avould be 1 ,*500,000. Last week the factories turned out 25 aircraft.