CONDUCT OF THE WAR

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23537, 15 January 1942, Page 5

CONDUCT OF THE WAR

Need for Fuller Consultation STATEMENT ISSUED BY SIR EARLE PAGE (Received January 14, 9 p.m.) (8.0.W.-U.P.A.) RUGBY, Jan. 13. A statement suggesting an improvement in consultation between the Imperial Governments was issued to-day by Sir Earle Page, Australia’s special envoy to Britain. “The necessity is generally acknowledged.” the statement said, "for fuller consultation m regard to problems concerned with the conduct of the war early enough to help mould policy and strategy. Before there can be effective consultation and co-ordin-ation between the Allies, there must be effective arrangements within the Empire. The machinery must be hon-

zontal cn the political plane and vertical on the administrative plane. It must have a family resemblance to the machinery that is successfully functioning in co-ordinating British departmental effort under the War Cabinet. "This system enables the departments to know, while policy is still fluid, what other departments think, while at the same time it places in the hands of the War Cabinet full infonnation ns to the relevant facts. “Our slow progress in Empire coordination has been due to the fact that we have confined our efforts to measures in the horizontal pinnothere has been too much emphasis laid on the political make-up. We must build an administrative foundation, the scaffolding of which is permanent and continuous and the quality of which will always be standard. This will enable the Dominion Ministries to have detailed information from their technical advisers placing them in as good a position as British Ministers. “The fullest information should be conveyed to and from the Dominions and their views sought and exchanged with criticism given and taken—all this being done on a lower plane than the Ministerial level and at a stage when foreign policy and strategy are still in fluid form. "What is now needed is a more active and complete system of liaison, covering not only foreign policy but the three fighting services as well as supply and economic relations.” Report to Federal Government Another message says that Sir Earle Page has made a report for improving Empire co-ordination to the Federal Government. It is understood that Sir Earle Page recommends: (1) Several liaison officers to advise British Government departments about Australia’s attitude to problems; (2) These officers to be responsible to the Australian High Commissioner (Mr S. M. Bruce). (3) A small expert committee to advise the liaison officers. Australian representation in the British War Cabinet and in a council of action in the Pacific was urged by Mr P. C. Spender, former Minister for the Army. , “If Sir Earle Page’s recommendation is simply the appointment of liaison officers to advise British departments of Australia’s attitude to war problems, it leaves me cold,” he said. "The Australian public is fed up witli torrents of words. It wants action, Australia is vitally interested not only in the Pacific zone but in all the operations of the war and it should be represented by a Minister at all meetings of the British War Cabinet.”

pursuit IN LIBYA. The pursuit of General von Rommel’s main forces in Libya had by Monday brought the British advance guard to the line running from El Agheilasouth to Marada. The communique issued by British General Headquarters in Cairo said it was expected that the Axis forces would attempt to make a stand on this line. Points to the west which have been heavily bombed by the Royal Air Force to hamper the reinforcement of the Axis include Sirte, Buerat el Hsun, Misrata, Homs, Tripoli, and Zuara.