DEFENCE PLANS – OF BRITAIN

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22194, 10 September 1937, Page 8

DEFENCE PLANS - OF BRITAIN

AIR MENACE SAID TO BE DIMINISHING RESULTS OP SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH SIR THOMAS INSKIP REPORTS TO PARLIAMENT (FROM our own correspondent.* LONDON, July 28. Belief that scientific research would soon free Britain from the menace of aerial attack was expressed by Sir Thomas Inskip, Minister for the Coordination of Defence, in the House of Commons last night. Replying to Mr Winston Churchill, who suggested that if peace could be secured for 10 or even seven years, “the ground would master the air,” he said that the Research Committee had pre -need some very remarkable results, the nature of which must remain secret. Viscount Swinton, Secretary for Air, he added, was engaged in devising methods of defence, which, he hoped, would secure Britain’s immunity even sooner than Mr Churchill had suggested. Considered plans had been made for the co-ordination of the three services, and for the transference of the nation to a war footing with the least possible friction. Sir Thomas Inskip said that his time and energy were no longer devoted chiefly to supply. He was at last mainly occupied ■wittv the task, ot coordination. and with the plans and the intellectual problems of defence. His speech was regarded as a significant proof of the progress which has been made in British rearmament and of the better organisation of the higher direction of the services. Considered plans were being made for any war in-which Britain might be engaged. The effect would be to bring about the transition to a war footing and the plans had been tested by some of the emergencies of the last two or three years. They also ensured that the Army. Navy, and -.ir Force commanders in any theatre ot war would be in close touch with each other, reproducing the co-ordination at homo, with instruction from th 1 throe departments closely concerted A Perpetual Problem In any plans that were being made, ho said, the possibility of war was a perpetual problem. Were they to turn the whole country to the footing that war would come certainly, or were they to do what was logical and methodical? The Government had been perfectly logical and methodical in designing the plan, and then taking it up with the local authorities. The second stage had been reached, and he saw no reason why they should not carry out the plan so carefully and elaboratately made. The . question whether attack from the ait was so overwhelmingly superior to defence was one of the intellectual problems. -He shared with Mr Churchill the view that if proper attention were given to fighting the air menace a way would be found. The Research Committee had been very active indeed, and had produced some very remarkable results. Nothing could be more disastrous or wrong than for him to attempt even to hint at what research had attained and how much stronger Britain was in the air defences as a consequence of the discoveries and the applications of those discoveries. “Thoroughness of Scheme” Referring to the thoroughness of the co-ordination scheme, Sir Thomas Inskip said that before his appointment, planning from day to day was done by the Joint Planning Committee. It was the body, under the chiefs of staff, which prepared the necessary plans for any emergency or situation which required attention. Just about the time he was appointed, the Joint Planning Committee was reinforced by the appointment for another committee which was to do under the Joint Planning Committee long range planning. Plans relating to every possible theatre of operations had been considered by that committee, approved. and possibly revised by the chiefs of staff, and in every case except one, now under consideration of the Government, those plans had been approved by the Government itself. As to the extraction of oil from coal, a committee had been appointed to examine the various processes and to report on their economic possibilities and the advantages to be obtained from them by way of security of oil supplies in an emergency. When that committee had reported the Government would be able to consider whether the cost of the scheme and the loss involved were disproportionate to the advantage to be obtained. If they were going to produce oil from coal Ihev would want not une or two or three unite, but perhaps a number running into double figures. Every unit that they erected for producing oil from coal would provide one more target for the enemy. If they were to make themselves solely dependent upon oil from coal, and were not to keep in existence the system of a service of tankers they would have given one or more hostage to fortune. It would be sufficient for an enemy to destroy one or two or three units to bring disaster, because it would mean the difference between sufficiency and insufficiency. Dealing with food storage, Sir Thomas Inskip said he was onlv in a ■ position to say that the Government had had the assistance of one of its greatest civil servants on that question for months. He reviewed the position in all the detail which was necessary to enable the Government to come to a decision on food storage. It was not an easy question, and the proposals had not been either refused or accepted at present by the Govemment. _______________