HARD YEAR AHEAD

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 113, 6 February 1941, Page 8

HARD YEAR AHEAD

Big Strain On British Shipping MINISTER REVIEWS PROSPECTS LONDON, February 4.

The Minister of Shipping, Mr. Cross, referring to Britain’s shipping losses in London today, said this year would be a hard year in which some of the most important, if not the most important, aspects of the battle would be at sea, but there were many good reasons why they should look to 1942 in a more sanguine frame of mind. By that time Britain’s strength in the field, in the air, and at sea should be far greater than it was today.

He could not say what contribution the United States proposed to make for merchant shipping, Mr. Cross continued. but he had no doubt that the help the United States would give to Britain in the way of aircraft, tanks and many other munitions of war would be’parallel to assistance to her vital communications. He went on to say that it would be imprudent to assume that the reduction in shipping losses "would be a permanent feature, and he would not disguise the fact that Britain’s losses were in excess of her replacements, but they could look forward with confidence as their air and naval strength grew to an increasing volume of protection for the ships whjch carried cargoes to these islands. The building of merchant ships in this country was being pushed forward with energy, and Empire shipbuilding yards were also providing new tonnage to help Britain to beat the Üboat menace. Canadian Building. Mr. Cross said that Canada, which before the war had about 1,250,000 tons on its shipping register, has launched vessels from yards at Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax. A large number of merchant ships were now on the stocks and it was announced recently that Canada is to build 18 large merchant vessels for the British Government. There were some 40 shipbuilding and repairing establishments in the Dominion, and even before the war about 4000 permanent workers were employed. In 1938 repair work was done to a value of over £3,000,000.

Though South Africa had not a shipbuilding industry, large-scale repairs could be carried out at Durban, where there were well-equipped repair yards and a dry dock. Australia had built only a small number of vessels before the war, but had since greatly enlarged its shipbuilding capacity. A yard was to be established at Whyalla, South Australia, to build merchant ships up to 12,000 tons, and Mr. Hughes, Minister of the Navy, had declared that shipbuilding must become one of the great national industries of Australia. Orders amounting to £250,000 for engines and machinery had been placed in Queensland.

Speaking of the strain on British shipping, Mr. Cross said: “I should like to tell you of the extraordinary variety of troop movements which lias been carried out by the Merchant Navy. We have carried Canadian troops from Canada to this country, to Iceland, and to the West Indies; Newfoundlanders to this country for the Army and Navy and for log cutting; Australians and New Zealanders to the Middle East and to Britain; South Africans to East Africa and Egypt; and Indians to East Africa, Egypt and Britain. In addition, we have moved Gold Coast, Nigerian, Palestine and Cypriot troops. We have carried troops from this country to such a variety of places that I will not detail them to you, for they cover the world from Bermuda to Singapore and from Iceland to Hong Kong.”