DEBATE IN COMMONS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 95, 20 March 1940, Page 10

DEBATE IN COMMONS

TONNAGE MAINTAINED. DEFENCE OF POLICY. (United Press Association—By Electric 'telegraph—Copyright.) (British Official Wireless.) PUG BY,. March 18. The Minister of Shipping (Sir John Gilmour), in the House of ■ Commons, paid a tribute to the wonderful spirit in which the men of the Mercantile Marine were responding to the calls upon them, despite the violent and inhumane enemy attacks to which they were exposed. Sir John was speaking in a debate on an Opposition motion regretting the absence of efficiency and foresight in the administration of his Ministry and calling for speedy expansion ot the shipbuilding programme.

The Labour spokesman (Air E. Shinwell) severely criticised the Ministry s control ot shipping—which he distinguished from nationalisation—and alleged that there had been serious misdirection of tonnage and waste or misuse of specialised facilities. He voiced concern at what he considered tardiness in the full- utilisation of shipbuilding resources to make good more rapidly the losses inflicted by enemy action. While disowning any wish to bring comfort to the enemy, Mr Shinwell expressed the opinion that Government statements of shipping losses gave an unduly favourable impression. On the one hand the total was swollen by including a number of large liners either laid up or of small cargo capacity. while on the other hand the figure of losses was confined to the tonnage of ships actually sunk by the enemy and overlooked many damaged, either in an enemy attack or in other ways, which while nnder repair were in effect lost as effective tonnage. Air Shin well, on this basis, argued that the total losses in Hie first six months of the war might amount to as much as-threequarters of a mduon tons. ARAUNG OF VESSELS.

Sir John Gilmour described the measures taken to supply merchant vessels with more safety devices and with means of self-defence against the illegal NaH warfare, and with more wireless operators. The Admiralty and \\ ai Office were giving every assistance in the arming .of merchantmen and the best progress possible had been made consistent witli the obvious difficulties of supply. Under the scheme for assistance to shipbuilding which tame into effect before the war, loans for over £4.750.000 had been granted with respect to 55 new vessels. Mr H. Graham White, for the Libera! Opposition, urged the necessity to give means of sclt-defcnce without delay to all ships, large or small.

Air G. H. Shakespeare (Parliamentary Under-Secretary to the Admiralty) said that, although the industry had suffered a severe slump after "the last war, the much-critieis-ed rationalisation, which started in 1030 had stood the industry in good stead. He averred that the potential capacity of British shipyards was not less than the highest peak in 1914 to 1918.

At the outset of the present war there were upwards of 000.000 tons of naval and about 730,000 tons of merchant ships under construction and since then the Admiralty and the Shippin" Ministry had greatly stimulated the orders of both classes of ships. The Admiralty having taken the responsibility for shipbuilding) as in the last war, it was able to strike a balance between the country’s needs in warships and merchantships. TRAINING OF UNEMPLOYED. Continuing, Mr Shakespeare stated that the services of Mr Westwood, general secretary of the Ship Construction Shipwrights’ Union, had been scoured by the Admiralty lor dealing with labour problems, and he added that his own experience of negotiations with the trades union leaders had shown him that their purpose was identical with that of the Government in the prosecution of the war. Mr Shakespeare explained that there were still 6000 skilled men unemployed and he stated that negotiations were in progress to provide modern training for these men with a view to their absorption in the industry employment in which. ho said, had grown from 9000 to 131,000. This was a considerable advance, but did not call for too much optimism as the men had been mainly engaged upon work consequent on the commission or conversion of ships, both naval and mercantile, to war purposes.

Questioned as to the maximum output of merchantmen aimed at, Mr Shakespeare replied: “I want to give the broadest answer l can without disclosing the actual figures, f can sa.y wc intend to achieve the maximum capacity of which the shipyards are capable, subject to the governing factors of labour and material, and we certainly hope to achieve a rate far in advance of the annual rate of sinkings to be expected from the enemy.”

When the results of certain surveys now proceeding wort known the First Lord would make a statement.