BRITAIN PREPARES FOR WAR EMERGENCY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 42, 19 February 1937, Page 7

BRITAIN PREPARES FOR WAR EMERGENCY.

MUCH WORK DONE.

Co-ordir,ating Services and Industry.

MINISTER'S STATEMENT

British Official Wireless.

(Received 1.30 p.m.) RUGBY, February 18. The debate in the House of Commons on defence was continued today. Mr. A. V. Alexander (Lab.), a former First Lord of the Admiralty, argued first that the need for the rearniann'tit programme was due to opportunities lost in past years by the Government in the sphere of foreign policy, and, secondly, that no evidence was forthcoming that the Government was obtaining proper value for the expenditure on which it was asking Parliament to embark.

Thirdly, he argued that the method of raising money by loans for such expenditure violated the canons of sound finance. Sir Thomas Inskip, Minister for Coordination of Defence, remarked on the fact that no speaker had questioned a single item of the programme of rearmament set out in the White Paper. He said the House itself would have full opportunity of safeguarding economy when the Estimates came before it.

Sir Thomas gave examples of considered planning in which all three Services co-operated and which, he hoped, would serve to allay anxieties on the score of lack of co-ordination.

Example of Co-ordination. . The whole question of coast defence had been generally examined, bearing in mind the weight of naval or air attack to which different ports might be exposed, and the actual defence required for each individual port under modern conditions had been worked out in detail down to discussion with authorities on the -spot as to the allocation" of different forms of armaments.

Another example given by the Minister was the accumulation ,of a munitions reserve and industrial potentialities. He doubted if the House realised the exhaustive review which had been made of factory capacity for different types of armament and munitions.

He instanced the discovery of a definite deficiency in the certain needs of the Army and how immediate steps were being taken to remedy it by the Government acquiring an engineering undertaking on the Tyne which would make capacity equal to any demand which emergency might make.

Regarding higher strategic considerations, the Minister spoke warmly of the experience, initiative and intelligence of the military, naval and air experts working on or under the Committee of Imperial Defence, and mentioned incidentally that consideration was being given to lessons of last year arising from events in the eastern and western Mediterranean.

An Opposition speaker, later in the debate, said that though the Labour party must vote against the loans proposal, all sides of the House were united in making the defences of the country adequate.

-.. AMERICA'S REACTION.

Policy is to Have Navy Second To None.

18 BRITAIN "BLUFFING"?

WASHINGTON, February 18. Admiral William Leahy, Chief of Naval Operations, has given a clear indication that the Navy Department will recommend the United States to match Britain in regard to new battleship construction. At a conference with journalists he stated that he knew of no change in the policy of the United States that the Navy should be second to none.

Admiral Leahy said he believed the sentiment of the country was that if «ny other Power expanded its Navy appreciably the United States would have to follow to maintain parity. He intimated, however, that since the new British construction appeared to be for> the replacement of over-age ■hips, probably there would be no necessity for the United States to build new aircraft-carriers or cruisers, because Britain had several old ships in these categories and America had none.

The belief is expressed in some quarters in Washington that Britain does not intend to build all the ships listed in the White Paper, but that her real aim is to frighten the naval Powers, chiefly Italy and Germanv, which have refused to participate in a naval armaments agreement.