EMPIRE DEFENCES

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXV, Issue 64, 27 February 1935, Page 7

EMPIRE DEFENCES

TOUR OF INSPECTION General Debate in Commons INCREASED ESTIMATES (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Received 27, 10.15 a.m.) LONDON, Feb. 26. General Sir Archibald MontgomeryMassingberd, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, will leave England on February 28 to carry out a tour of inspection in Egypt, Palestine and the Sudan, travelling from Marseilles in the liner Strathnaver. He will arrive at Cairo on March 6 and travel by air to Khartoum on March 9, returning to Cairo on March 13. Before leaving Egypt for Palestine on March 20 he will visit Ismailia. He will also visit Transjordan and will leave for England at the end of March. Major-General Barron will carry out a similar mission to Singapore, Hongkong, Colombo and Aden. His and General Massingberd’s reports will be collated and submitted to the Committee on Imperial Defence in readiness for discussions with the Empire Prime Ministers. The “Daily Herald” says that the Government and the Imperial General Staff are preparing plans for reconditioning and strengthening all outlying naval and military bases following Sir Maurice Hankey’s consultations with the Dominions. A special meeting of Cabinet decided, in view of the visit of the Dominion Primo Ministers, to hold a general debate on Imperial Defence tn the House of Commons as the outcome of Sir Maurice Hankey’s tour and in connection with the Defence Estimates, which are being issued next week. It is recognised that the Navy, Army and Air Force estimates inevitably will bo substantially higher than last year, and Cabinet is anxious that the House of Commons discuss the estimates in their entirety, besides the votes for separate services.