WAR PRODUCTION.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 210, 3 August 1940, Page 6

WAR PRODUCTION.

ORGANISATION IN BRITAIN. AREA BOARD SCHEME. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, Aug. 1. Explaining the Government’s new plans for the fullest employment of the industrial capacity of the country in meeting war requirements, the Parliamentary Secretary to the • Ministry of Supply (Mr H. Macmillan) described the structure and functions of the new area boards. Each of the 12 area boards has six representatives of local industry (three employers and three trade unionists) and five official members representing each of the departments mainly concerned, namely, the Supply, Aircraft Production, and Labour Departments, and the Admiralty and the Board of Trade. The chairman and vice-chairman arc representative either of the employers or the trade unionists. In three instances a trade unionist is chairman. Mr Macmillan said: “The new boards have the extremely important function of employing their own knowledge of local industry to ensure that its capacity is fully employed, or, if it cannot be employed as it stands, that its labour and plant are transferred to points where they can be used. The boards will also be available to advise contractors where best to place subcontracts. “One of the board’s duties will be to carry, out a complete inspection of machine tools, fol'owing the Ministry of Supply’s recent census of machine tool working hours. The boards will be concerned with the allocation of capacity in their districts as between the requirements of the different Government supply departments and will be able to give advice when priority questions arise. The board also will act as controllers of war production in their areas if communications break down,” THIRTEEN MINISTRIES. The Daily Herald says that henceforth 13 Ministries of Supply instead of one will direct the production of munitions in Britain, states a Press Association message. Twelve junior Ministers of Supply will be stationed at key points in the industrial districts and will immediately take over active control of important features of production from the parent Ministry. This establishment of a chain organisation, the newspaper siays, is the main feature of the plans of the Minister of Supply (Mr H. Morrison) for making full use of Britain’s industrial capacity. In,effect the detailed supervision of the output, plant, and manpower is being transferred from Whitehall to the workshops.