BRITISH POLICY

Wairarapa Times-Age, 2 November 1938, Page 6

BRITISH POLICY

MR CHAMBERLAIN REPLIES TO CRITICISMS DEFENCE OF MUNICH AGREEMENT PREFERABLE TO THE USE • OF FORCE. SURVEY OF CIVIL DEFENCES. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 11.43 a.m.) RUGBY, November 1. The Prime Minister (Mr Neville Chamberlain) stated in the House of Commons that it was, the Government’s intention to bring the AngloItalian Agreement into force as soon as possible. A motion to that effect would be debated on the following day (today). Mr Chamberlain announced that early next session a full and comprehensive statement would be made on the steps the Government had taken and was taking to deal with defence matters. He agreed to consider the issue of a White Paper in advance of the debate. Rising after Mr C. R. Attlee (Leader of the Opposition) in the general debate on the adjournment motion, Mr Chamberlain answered Mr Attlee regarding the Munich agreement. He condemned the tendency to describe it as a defeat of democracy or of the cause of law and order. He regarded it, on the contrary, as a step towards carrying out, by discussion between the democracies and the totalitarian states, an agreed solution of the problem. to which the alternative appeared to be the use of force. Mr Chamberlain said he was not yet in a position to make a fuller statement on the proposed guaranteed loan to Czechoslovakia, or to add anything respecting the offer to guarantee the new Czech frontiers to Sir Thomas Inskip’s statement on October 4. Mr Chamberlain rebuked Mr Attlee for his remarks regarding the Balkan tour of the'German Minister of Economics (Herr Funk) and said there was room there for both Britain and Germany and surely no necessity for economic warfare. He also twitted Mr Attlee with being too gloomy about British trade prospects in China. The second half of Mr Chamberlain’s speech was devoted to questions arising from the review which the Government had made of civil and military, defences to see what arrears or deficiencies had been revealed in the recent emergency. While the civil preparations were far from comprehensive or perfect, nevertheless, Mr Chamberlain considered, had they been put to the test, they would have worked a great deal better than many supposed. Air raid precautions had assumed such gigantic proportions that a separate Minister was required to give it his whole attention. Sir John Anderson, as Lord Privy Seal, would in fact be Minister of ■Civil Defence, having direct charge of air raid precautions. COLONIES PROBLEM OPPOSITION LEADER’S VIEW HOLDING AREAS FOR BENEFIT OF WORLD (Received This Day, 1.30 p.m.) LONDON, November 1. Opening the general debate in the House of Commons, the Leader of the Opposition (Mr C. R. Attlee) said the only solution of the colonial problem was an abandonment of the imperialistic attitude of holding colonies by mandate for the principle of. colonies for the benefit of the world.