REPORT ON FURTHER U.K. CUTS EAST OF SUEZ

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31318, 14 March 1967, Page 17

REPORT ON FURTHER U.K. CUTS EAST OF SUEZ

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) LONDON, March 13. Ministers expect the Defence Minister, Mr Denis Healey, to announce further substantial defence cuts east of Suez towards the end of summer, lan Aitken, of the “Guardian” reports.

The only factor holding up the announcement, Aitken says, is the need for consultation with Australia and New Zealand.

Aitken says this is the word being passed among ministers and Labour back-benchers in the light of last month’s abstention by Labour members on the defence vote. Hints of a similar kind were dropped at the time by Mr

Healey, in a speech during this debate and in the defence .White Paper itself, Aitken says. However, the hints did not prove strong enough to dissuade the Government’s backbench rebels from withholding their support for the White Paper. The reason why they were not strong enough appeared yesterday. The Prime Minister, Mr Harold Wilson, and a substantial section of Cabinet were strongly in favour of incorporating specific undertakings on future cuts in the Paper, Aitken said. Mr Healey went ahead on this basis and produced a White Paper which included undertakings of further savings east of Suez. But at this stage the Foreign Office is said to have

stepped in with a grave warning of the political and diplomatic consequences. The Foreign Office vetoed the original version of the White Paper, Aitken says.

The result was that when the White Paper appeared, it had no more than an obscurely worded paragraph about future expenditure being under continuous review. The Foreign Office was able to advance cogent reasons for its attitude, Aitken says. Premature generalities about cuts, it forecast, might have an undesirable effect on Australia,' New Zealand and Singapore. The Cabinet appear to have accepted reluctantly the Foreign Office’s case. It also appeared to have accepted the absolute need to carry Australia and New Zea-

land along with Britain in any proposed cuts east of Suez. Mr Healey was therefore reduced to hinting—and does not appear to have done even that with as much success as some Ministers had hoped.

The word has therefore been passed around to expect some meaty announcements around July. Earnest efforts will be made to allay the fears of Australia and New Zealand.