WAR PROFITEERS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLVIII, Issue 21556, 19 January 1940, Page 8

WAR PROFITEERS

SUSPECTS REFUSE TO SHOW THEIR BOOKS (Special—By Air Mall) LONDON, December 23. The managing director of a firm working on Britain's national defence programme had his salary increased from £5OO to £15.000. This is one of the revelations made this week by Sir Alan Barlow, Treasury’ Under-Secretary, in his report of evidence given to the Select Committee on Estimates. “The cost accountant, when investigating overheads, looks for excessive charges of that sort,” said Sir Alan. “Last year the accountants disallowed what they thought were excessive payments to two of the managing staff of the firm. The accountants said ‘lt is for you to decide whether you pay these sums, but you pay them out of profits and not as a debit to the Government’.” Treasury suspicion that machinetool makers engaged in the national defence programme were making excessive profits was met by a blank refusal of firms concerned to submit their books to costing, Sir Alan said. The money involved was “pretty considerable.” The panel of industrialists set up by the Prime Minister was consulted, and it said it thought that the Machine Tool Association ought to do better. This request was put to the Association, but it had not replied. The Air Ministry suspected that prices paid by the main contractors for a certain important material were high, and it asked for costing. One of the firms agreed, but the other three refused. A threat to deprive the firms of contracts would be futile, as the products were essential.