FURTHER ORDERS ISSUED

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 78, 26 June 1943, Page 4

FURTHER ORDERS ISSUED

UNCERTAINTY OF FUTURE THE NEEDS OF INDUSTRY Auckland, June 25. Another release of home defence soldiers for the benefit of industry can be expected to result from a decision to reduce still further the strength of the Dominion’s permanently mobilised Army forces, states the “Herald.”. Cadre or nucleus establishments which comprised these forces following a general reorganisation made earlier in the year have again been reviewed, and instructions which have been issued will reduce some units to little more “than maintenance sections. It is becoming increasingly apparent that the Government's policy is to concentrate upon assisting the United Nations offensive. This decision places emphasis upon Expeditionary Force and Air Force requirements and the porduction of war materials and supplies, including vast quantities of food. HISTORY REPEATING ITSELF The uncertainty of the home defence Army’s future is seen not only in the necessity further to reduce cadres, but also in the failure so far to implement the earlier decision to give non-mobil-ised reservists a month’s annual camp training and two days’ parade trainihg a month; in the complete absence of any statement of policy on the maintenance of the Home Guard, and in the Army conferences which have had to be held with almost bewildering regularity in Wellington. The wartime history of the Territorial Force continues to repeat itself; no sooner is one decision made than another contrary or amending one takes its place. However, from the enshrouding feilence and uncertainty another development promises, cr threatens, to emerge, and that is a revision of the composition, or paper strength, of the mobile field forces. As the Japanese threat developed, the old district brigade group organisation was expanded into divisional and district organisations. Now that the Japanese threat has waned and there has been a reorientation of defence policy, it would not be surprising if there was a reversion to brigade groups. SOUTH PACIFIC INFLUENCES Indeed, some even foresee the day when a further advance in the South Pacific campaign will be followed by a virtual disappearance of the home defence Territorial and Home Guard forces. They also expect that the re-cently-announced training scheme for non-mobilised” reservists will not be enforced. Certainly, it is difficult to see how the strengths to which cadres are now going to be reduced can cope with maintenance or with training unless an entirely new or greatly modified training plan is devised. One reason for the new reduction of cadres possibly lies in the fact that the first reduction did not yield the promised industrial benefits. IL is» no secret that by the lime large numbers of men, who had elected to apply for the Air Force in preference being drafted into esesntial industry, had been “frozen” for this service, and by the time various other factors, including Expeditionary Force mobilisations, had taken effect, the net gain in manpower returned to Industry did not very much increase production.