SIR STAFFORD CRIPPS

Grey River Argus, 21 November 1942, Page 1

SIR STAFFORD CRIPPS

REVIEW OF WAR SITUATION. v RUGBY, Nov. 18. “Now -the first flush of rejoicing m our victory is past, we can see that the gains made by the Allies in North Africa, provide very solid reason for a more confident outlook in the future,” said Sir S. Cripps, replying to the debate on the Address, in the Commons. He added, however, “Though we are rightly more confident. we certainly must not be overconfident, for a very stern uphill fight still lies ahead, before we can even gain mastery of North Africa and obtain the full harvest of this initial sowing.” Sir S. Cripps said the Prime Minicter had described our present success as “the end of the beginning.” It marked another stage in the development of the war, and this fresh stage would place even a greater strain upon our resources than any we had so far experienced. The enemy still had ample strength with which to strike back, and it would require the utmost effort of every man and woman in these .islands and throughout the British Commonwealth, to consumate, in association with the forces of our allies, that complete victory with which alone' we should be satisfied.

In the course of the debate, some uneasiness had been expressed as to the political situation in North Africa. He could not do better than quote with approval the remarks by Mr. Roosevelt in his statement published yesterday. “So far as the British Government is concerned.” said Sir S. Cripps, the position of General De Gaulle is well understood, and his recent statement on this matter was made with the British Government’s full knowledge. After stating every single effort would be made to bring manpower to maximum efficiency, Sir S. Cripps said; Perhaps the most serious problem raised in debate was the U-boat danger. The fact we did not widely advertise the steps taken to cope with this menace must not lead the House to think we were doing nothing in the matter. Very special measures were taken to make effective both offensive and defensive' in this important field. Expressing appreciation _ of the distinguished part the Dominions were playing in the Pacific front. Sir S. Cripps, referring to the Solomons battle, said it was quite clear our ally’s navy had won a most important victory, marked by most gallant fighting on their part. We should all like to offer most sincere congratulations to the United States Navy and th’s latest triumph, following the earlier successes, would have done a great deal to redress the' balance of naval strength in that area. It was a very important contribution that had been made to our joint offensive in the South-west Pacific, and should decrease considerably the chances ot any successful counter-attack in the Solomons. Very great strides in the direction of unified strategy had been made, thanks very largely to the personal efforts of Mr. Churchill, said Sir S. Cripps, and the Government was constantly aiming at the greatest measure of unification consistent with the widely separated theatres of war. This not only related to our American allies, but to our Russian allies, as well. Concluding Sir S. Cripps gave the assurance that our bombing effort against the Axis Powers was regarded as one of the essentials of victory, and no efforts would be spared to deliver large continuous loads of bombs over Italy and Germany when weather conditions permitted. Once we established airfields in North Africa, the Italians will come to realise what their German allies suffered and may come to realise what an even more intensive attack means in terms of destruction and discomfort. The Labour Parliamentary party has put down the following amendment to the address now being debated in the Commons: “While' welcoming the declaration that the United Nations are endorsing the principles of the Atlantic Charter, we would impress upon Your Majesty’s advisers the urgent necessity .of reaching a practical conclusion in co-operation with the United Nations, to fulfil these undertakings, and of taking rhe necessary legislative administrative action to implement without delay the pledges given to Your Majecty s subjects in the United Kingdom.