WAR ON WASTE.

Taranaki Daily News, 15 February 1922, Page 5

WAR ON WASTE.

ECONOMY IN BRITAIN. DEBATE IN THE COMMONS. ATTACK* BY LIBERALS. By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. Received. Feb. 14, 5.5 p.m. London, Feb. 13. The Geddes Economy Committee’s report, recommending huge reductions in expenditure, was discussed in the House of Commons to-day. The leader of the House (Mr. Austen Chamberlain) announces that the Admiralty memorandum on -the Geddes report was circulated pursuant to a general decision of the Government, who thought it desirable that the House should possess this information, as well as the Geddes report. In continuing the debate on the Address-in-Reply, Mr. H. H. Asquith (Leader of the Liberal Party) moved an amendment accusing the Government of extravagance, and calling for a reduction in the crushing burden of taxation. Although he would not say that the Geddes Committee had not done useful work he was still of opinion that the appointment of the committee was unsound in principle and amounted to a delegation to an outside and irresponsible body of functions which ought to be discharged by the Treasury. The Admiralty Board’s counterblast accused the committee of gross ignorance and abject incompetence, and it looked as though the Admiralty memorandum was only an advance guard of a procession of similar documents from other departments.

BURDEN OF WAR DEBT. Referring to the Geddes Committee’s reductions in the army, navy and air force, Mr. Asquith complained that the personnel of the army was 30,000 in excess of pre-war days. The cost of* the war office Was £1,300,000, compared with £457,000 before the war, and despite that the aimed camp in Europe had practically disappeared. Mr. Asquith condemned the ill-judged parsimony of education expenditure, adding: “Our present position is mainly due to wasted millions on ill-conceived and vacillating policies.” Sir Robert Horne (Chancellor of the Exchequer), said Mr. Asquith quite ignored the most important factor in the expenditure, namely the war debt, whieji was responsible for nearly half the annual expenditure and represented 37in £1 in the income tax. The Treasury asked for £113,000,000 reduction, not because that sum was being wasted, ibut because the country simply could not face such a heavy bill. He denied surrender of the Treasury’s authority by the appointment of the Geddes Committee, which had not the responsibility for the Treasury’s policy. The latter was entitled to consult whatever expert advice was available; no Chancellor could afford to give the time to produce such a report.

LARGE REDUCTIONS NEEDED. Sir Robert Horne added that large reductions must be made either along the lines of the committee’s recommendations, or on some other principles, but it was perfectly obvious that all the recommendations could not be accepted in their entirety, as difficult and grave questions of policy were involved. When the Estimates were forthcoming it would be found that the reductions, amounting to £40,000,000, were not entirely due to the Geddes Committee’s ieport., but to the Government’s own investigations. Some had been effected in the British Army.' which were never based on the size of European armies, but on the responsibilities of the British Empire. British finance had always teen the admiration of the world; it was one of the greatest factors in the maintenance of European civilisation. Mr. J. R. Clynes (Leader of the Parliamentary Labor Party) stated the curtailment of payments for health and education would ultimately be no saving. Preventing children going to school before six would be absolutely cruel to both children and parents. Mr. Chamberlain, winding up the debate, said the Government could not delegate to the committee a decision, for which Ministers were responsible. The Government was responisble for the safety of the country and peace throughout the Empire. With every desire to find a reason for accepting the Geddes Committee’s recommendations there were considerations of which the committee could not be judges.

Mr. Asquith’s amendment was negatived by 241 votes to 92. —Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.