BRITISH CABINET

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 150, 22 December 1938, Page 11

BRITISH CABINET

TWO NEW MEMBERS

SIR JOHN ANDERSON'S ROLE

Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain put new blood into his Cabinet tonight by appointing Sir John-Anderson, for many years one of the most capable civil servants, as Lord Privy Seal with the supremely difficult job of trying to organise civilian defences in Britain, said a London message to the "New York Times" on October 31.

At the same time Viscount Runciman was rewarded for his work in Czechoslovakia by being brought back into the Cabinet as Lord President of the Council—a sinecure post whose occupant takes precedence over all other political office holders except the Lord Chancellor and the Prime {Minister. Lord Runciman succeeds Viscount Hailsham, who retires from high office after having served in the Cabinet continuously since' the formation of the National Government in 1931.

The last of the Cabinet changes announced was the official appointment of Colonial Secretary Malcolm Mac Donald to succeed the late Lord Stanley as Dominions Secretary. Mr. Mac Donald, who is high in Mr. Chamberlain's confidence, will combine the two Secretaryships.

With these modest changes the reshuffling of Mr. Chamberlain's Cabinet is believed to have come to an end. Former Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden has not been broughtNback, the base of the Government has not been broadened, and the average age of the Cabinet has been raised from 53 to 54 years. IN THE COMMONS A YEAR. In only one respect do the changes have the slightest political significance and this is in the appointment of Sir John Anderson less than a year after he was elected to the House,, of Commons for the first time. Before going into politics Sir John, who is 56 years old,.had gone through an amazing succession of offices in the Civil Service. He was the mainstay of the Irish Office in the dangerous days of "the troubles" in 1920. He was permanent chief of the Home Office during the great emergency of the General Strikf in 1926, and when he left in 1932 after, ten years of outstanding service he was appointed Governor of Bengal. Again he <faced an emergency—this time in the aftermath of the civil disobedience movement —and when he returned to England in 1937 after a narrow escape from assassination in India the Government decided he was too useful to go into retirement. A seat for the Scottish universities fell vacant with the death of Ramsay Mac Donald, and this tall Scotsman of few words found himself in the House of Commons "tipped" on all sides as a future Cabinet Minister and as "a coming man." So far Sir John has shown himself to be an organiser rather than a leader, but this is just what Mr. Chamberlain wants and needs at present. Sir John has already been important to. the Government as head of the committee dealing with the problem of evacuating London in wartime. It remains to be seen what he will do in the infinitely bigger and harder job of marshalling all of Britain's civilian defences so that another crisis may not find the country unprepared. AVIATION PROPOSALS. No provision has yet been made for the other urgent need of British rearmament, which is to speed up the production of anti-aircraft guns and fighter aeroplanes. It is understood, however, that Mr. Chamberlain submitted detailed proposals to a special meeting of the Cabinet. He is expected to announce his intentions to Parliament before long.

Industry will not be organised on a war basis as yet, but the Government is said to have means of assuring priority for essential armament orders without upsetting the whole structure of British export trade. Meanwhile, members of Parliament prepared to reassemble for three days of searching discussion of Britain's position in the world in the backwash of the Munich "settlement."