DEFENCE EXPENDITURE.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 November 1921, Page 4

DEFENCE EXPENDITURE.

The estimates connected with the Defence Departments for the current year do not appear to favor any reduction in taxation, for they total over £272,000 more than was expended last year, and the cost is well on the way towards double that of 1913-14: — Estimates 1921-2 .... £851,740 Expenditure 1913-14 . £488,570 Excess £363,1 1 0 It should be mentioned that the item for aviation ( £15,426) was not included. in the pre-war expenditure, and that the larger portion of the cost of the Chatham and Philomel, which in the current estimates is set down at £9f.302, formed part of the Dominion’s naval subsidy paid to Britain. The fact remains, however, that the taxpayers will have to find probably three hundredthousand pounds more this year than last for defence purposes, and it is open to grave question whether good value will be given for the expenditure. There is a large volume of public opinion which views much of this expendituie by no means favorably, and would prefer to cut it down by at least half and devote the saving to work of an urgent and useful character. It will come as a startling surprise to many that the amount earmarked this year for the .school of instruction and the military education of officers abroad has been increased by over thirteen thousand, pounds, and nearly the whole of this is a pure waste of money that could be avoided by a rational scheme of training. It is the highly-trained non-com-missioned men who are doing such good I work at present in drilling the Territorials. The strength of the country’s military forces, ns at June 30 last, was «3, officers numbering 1533, and

the permanent personnel 832. That furnishes some idea of how the burden of armed forces in this country is growing in weight, while the experience in wartime proved that beyond the essentials of drill both officers and men had to start from zero, and so will it be if another call to arms should at any -time be sounded in the future. . The naval side of defence is quite another matter, as the wishes of the Imperial Government must necessarily be studied. Even the provision of over £21,500 for coaling purposes must be taken as necessary. It is oh the military side alone that the cost of display is altogether beyond the needs and resources of the Dominion without diverting funds that should be used for more urgent and useful purposes. The Government, in this matter, is still in the hands of the military staff, and that is the explanation of the extravagance which members are evidently powerless to curtail. Military and physical training on a sensible scale can accomplish much good. It is th G abuse of the system that is the danger.