THE WAR COUNCIL

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23716, 14 August 1942, Page 6

THE WAR COUNCIL

ACTIVITIES CEASE MR FRASER’S TRIBUTE (P.A.) WELLINGTON, August 13. Announcing to-day that the functions of the War Council would be discontinued, the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser) paid a warm tribute to the services given by members during the council’s 'existence. At a recent meeting, said Mr Fraser, the War Council fully discussed its relationship with the War Administration and the view was expressed that, since the War Administration has assumed many of the duties and functions previously performed by the War Council, the time was ripe for a full co-ordination of all the War Council’s duties and functions under the new administrative body. In making a unanimous recommendation that the War Council • should terminate its functions, members offered to continue to place their individual services at the disposal of the Government in any form that might,: be required, and this offer woulcfct®; gladly availed of. Mr Fraser added that as Prime Minister he was deeply appreciative of the very helpful, conscientious manner in which the council members had approached every task with which they had been confronted. The basis of service was, of course, of a parttime voluntary nature, and in many casds the attendance of members at monthly meetings meant travelling considerable distances from their everyday work, thus entailing real sacrifices. t

The country should realise its debt to the members of the War Council, which had been the first body representative of all sections of the community to come together and assume a share of the great and growing war burden, and its representative basis had given its recommendations authority of first importance. Mr Fraser said he was sure that the country would agree with him that the War Council, throughout a most difficult period, had performed valuable work, and that the wholehearted thanks of the Government and the community were due to the members for, their unselfish and self-sacrificing, devotion to the highly Important deliberative and advisory functions which they had so successfully discharged. The&e functions had been on two planes, that of investigation, which was done through the Defence and Military Affairs Committee, and the Primary and Secondary Industries Committee, and also as a body to make recommendations to the Government and War Cabinet, The council had had wide representation, farmers being represented by Mr W. W. Mulholland, the workers- by Mr J. Eddy, the employers by Mr C. C. Davis, the Federation of Labour by Mr A. McLagan, the Returned Services’ Association by the Hon. W. Perry, M.L.C., the Maoris by Mr E. T. Tirikatene, M.P., and tne Legislature by Mr L. G. Lowry and Mr H. Atmore. The Government had also appointed Sir Andrew Russell to the council.