DEFENCE LOANS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22670, 6 March 1937, Page 15

DEFENCE LOANS

BILL PASSES COMMONS ATTITUDE OF LABOUR I MR. CHURCHILL'S WARNING By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright LONDON, March 4 J The Labour Party has decided to support the Defence Estimates. The Parliamentary group, after a meeting in the House of Commons!, rei solved to move amendments for the > reduction of each Estimate, but to • abstain from voting when the main 1 Estimates are finally submitted. This is construed as a tacit admission s that the international situation justifies • increases. "I cannot resist the conviction that ' we are moving through times as dangerous as any we have ever expert ' enced," said Mr. Winston Churchill, ) in supporting the third reading of the Defence Loans Bill in the House. , He added that he was astounded at [ the wave of optimism, .even complacency, which had swept over ParliaT ment and the public. He did not be- [ lieve there was danger of. war this spring or summer, but could Ministers s say that the Air Force next year would [ be more nearly a match for the; Ger- . man Air Force than it was to-da.v? Mr. Churchill complained that effecp tive discussion had been baffled by the I Government's vagueness and la.ck of 5 any quantitative statement as to the . date at which particular progress would be reached. There was no assurance ' that the programmes would be carried . out punctually, and no whereby 3 the House could check progress. r They knew the Air Force programme r was in arrear. There was also the ; serious question of a large number of ; foreigners in Britain belonging to Nazi ■ or Fascist organisations. There were any number of facts] 'of which the ? House had no .information, but on I which the foreign staff probably was - well informed. r Mr. 0. G. Ammon (Labour —CamberJ well) moved the rejection of the bill, which he said was a betrayal of the ; electors because the Government obi tained its majority at the laist election on peace pledges whereas this was i a war measure. t The amendment was defeated by 241 3 to 117 votes and the bill -was read a - third time. 1 According to the Daily Mail the first defence loan will be issued shortly I amounting to £100,000,000. 3 "AIR RAID WARDENS" NEW SERVICE IN BRITAIN SAFEGUARDING THE PUBLIC (Received March 5, 6.5 p.m.) British Wireless RUGBY. March 4 The local authorities are being I recommended to organfse a service of . "air-raid wardens" to supplement the i normal resources of the civil authorities for safeguarding the general pubs lie in the event of an air attack, s The duties of the wardens, oic whom i- about 300,000 are to be voluntarily i- enlisted, will include advising the pubr lie on officially recommended precaub tions against air raids; assisting; in the ■> distribution of respirators; and, in the - event of war, taking an active part 3 in helping their fellow citizens during - and after an air raid. I EUROPE REARMING S j FORMIDABLE PROGRAMMES f STATE OF NERVOUS TENSION t - British Wireless (RUGBY, March 4 Mr. Winston Churchill intervened in the third reading debate on the Defence Loans Bill in the House oi: Commons to-day. He referred to the re- ! ported decision of the Labour Party ■ not to vote against the Defence Esti- ■ mates. He said its effect would be to add appreciably to the safety of the country. Mr. Churchill warned the House against complacency in the face of the formidable rearmament in Europe accompanied by nervous tension and financial strain. While approving of the Government's programme, he exI pressed doubts as to whether its tempo was sufficiently high, or whether the j country was being made to face j squarely the sacrifices necessary for the !• preservation of its freedom.