NATIONAL PLANNING

Evening Star, Issue 24333, 23 October 1942, Page 4

NATIONAL PLANNING

DEBATE IN HOUSE OF LORDS (British Official Wireless.) (Rec. 11 a.m.) , RUGBY, October 22. A submission that machinery for national planning after the war should be settled now was made by Lord Keith, a former Minister of Works and Buildings, when the House of Lords to-day debated plans for post-war reconstruction. Lord Reith called attention to the machinery of planning advocated in the Uthwatt and Scott reports, and declared that it was quite impossible to wait until all the points in :hose two reports had been studied and analysed and decisions taken thereon. He believed that any machinery was better than none. It was impossible to separate social and economic planning from physical planning. Planning in both the social and economic spheres and also in the physical sphere wore required. I nterdepartmental machinery planning should not be the prerogative of any one department. Ultimately there should bo one non-departmental Minister of sufficient authority to be able to co-ordinate and reconcile the various departmental projects and above all get things done. Lord Addison confessed that :ho long delay in sotting up a central planning body for land control was very depressing because it was evident that ah the i end of the war immense issues would thrust themselves upon us, and it was impossible to think that any decisions could be reached unless a body of men long beforehand had given sustained thought to them Lord Snell, for the Government, said it accepted the principle of planning The proposals in the Scott and Uthwatt reports wore being continuously studied The Government was not prepared to announce a decision regarding them until their investigations were further advanced. Lord Snell said the Government accepted the recommendation that the registration of titles to land should he made compulsory over the whole of England and Wales. The Lord Chancellor had appointed a committee to consider the recommendation. It w'ou.d be presided over by Lord ißnshcliffe.