NAVAL RATIOS

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 254, 24 July 1935, Page 9

NAVAL RATIOS

Principle Abandoned By Britain

RECENT GERMAN PACT

Criticism Voiced in House of Commons FIRST LORD DEFENDS STEP il'.rilisti Ollieial Wireless.) Rugby, July 22. in ilie course of tlie debate on the Admiralty Vote in the House of Commons. Opposition speakers criticised the recent Anglo-German naval agreement as not contributing to disarmament, failing to provide for limitation of tonnage. and assuring German supremacy in the Baltic. Mr. George Hall (Lab.. Aberdare) feared a fresh impetus to naval building, and observed that among tlie nations affected by tlie Washington and London Naval Treaties 700 ships would be tine for replacement, between 1936 and 1912, and it was estimated that tlie total cost of replacement was £800,000.000.

Mr. Lloyd George (Lib.. Caernarvon) expressed surprised at the concession to Germany of a large number of submarines. Referring to his controversy with tlie First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Bolton Eyres-Monsell, on July 2 and 3. in the course of which he declared that whereas Germany, during the recent Anglo-German naval conversations. had offered to abolish submarines Britain had not been prepared to accept tlie offer, Mr. Lloyd George quoted reports in the newspapers, and asked why tlie First Lord had not contradicted tlie statement if it was incorrect. Did Hie Germans, either in tlie course of tlie preliminary talks or at the conference, intimate to the Admiralty that they were prepared to co-operate in tlie abolition of submarines?

Sir Bolton Eyres-Monsell: Certainly. I said so.

Mr. Lloyd George: Did we turn it down on the ground that France ami others would not accept? The First Lord: That is absolutely untrue. They said they would cooperate. We have decided to put the proposal forward when we get to a general conference at which something can be done. Mr. Lloyd George: After you have given Germany more submarines? The First Lord: We have a better chance because Germany is with us. Agreements Coining to End. Sir Bolton Eyres-Monsell said that after December, 1936, all existing naval agreements would come to an end, and unless they could put something in their place nil navies in the future would be entirely unrestricted. The Treaty of Washington had conferred enormous benefits on all maritime Powers. It had cut down expenditure and saved the taxpayers of every nation. It had maintained peace for the last 15 years because the. ratios adopted provided a standard of strength appropriate to defensive needs, and at the same time giving no country such a. predominance as would make it safe to risk aggression.

It was unfortunately necessary, lie said, io abandon (lie principle of ratios in efforts to secure new agreements because some countries felt it was wounding to (heir national pride.

Instead they had to have a system of programmes. They would not ask naval Powers what their ultimate strength was going to be, but what size of navy they proposed to have in, say. 1942. Then if they could by agreement accommodate those various naval strengths so as to provide adequate defence, yet making it exceedingly unlikely for any country to attack with any chance of ultimate success. they would have achieved something of enormous advantage to the taxpayers of the world and would have contributed very greatly to the general pacification. International Jigsaw Puzzle. Coming to the question of the agreement witli Germany, the First Lord compared the task of trying to secure international agreement with the putting together of a jigsaw puzzle in which the pieces were continually altering in shape, size, and colour. Until recently it had proved almost impossible to get any two pieces together. For this reason the Admiralty welcomed tile proposal of a great country like Germany to fix their ratio for ever at :i. point in relation to our own which we could view without undue anxiety. The general agreement which they had hoped to arrive at would not. have been any good at all unless Germany l.ad been in it.

He claimed that tin' Government did benefit not to Britain alone, but to the world, when ii closed witli the German oiler. With the object of obtaining agreement on building programmes, they had been having bilateral confidential conversations with a good many countries. The conversations were not conferences at which they could settle anything, but were to pave Hie way to a conference which they hoped might lie held at the end of this year. "The House must realise.” he said, “that we must, face up to realities, especially when one is dealing with dictators."

Mr. Winslmi Churchill (Con., Epping) said lie regretted that Britain condoned a Uagrant breach of the Versailles Treaty. 'The mobility of the Heer was greater after the war than before the war. When faced witli a German danger, that mobility would pass, and Hie whole argument for a base at Singapore to protect British interests in the Indian Ocean ami maintain the connection witli Australia would lie affected. They would be unable when Hie German licet was built to move any large portion of Hie British Fleet far from home.