FEW CHANCES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 8 November 1938, Page 5

FEW CHANCES

FEDERAL MINISTRY RECONSTRUCTED

CREATION OF INNER CABINET NEW DIVISION OF ACTIVITIES. TWO DEFENCE PORTFOLIOS. By Telegraph—Press Associaticfi —Copyright. (Received This Day, 9.40 a.m.) CANBERRA. This Day. The Prime Minister, Mr J. A. Lyons, tonight announced a reconstruction of the Federal Cabinet, which has been greatly strengthened as follows: — Prime Minister, Mr Lyons. Commerce, Sir Earle Page. Attorney-General and Industry, Mr R. G. Menzies. Treasurer, Mr R. G. Casey. External Affairs, Mr W. M. Hughes. Interior, Mr John McEwan. Minister of Civil Aviation, Defence and other Works, Mr H. V. C. Thorby. Minister of Naval, Military and Air Defence, Mr G. A. Street (present Parliamentary Defence Secretary). Customs, Mr F. W. White. Postmaster-General, Mr A. Cameron. Vice-President of the Executive Council and Leader of the Government in the Senate, Senator McLeay. Health and Repatriation, Senator Foil. Ministers without portfolios are as follow:—Assisting the Prime Minister Mr Perkins; assisting the Minister of Commerce. Mr V. Thompson; assisting the Treasurer, Senator McDonald. The six senior Ministers, Mr Lyons, Sir Earle Page, Messrs Menzies, Casey Hughes and Thorby, will form an Inner Cabinet group, to deal with major matters of national significance and Government policy, and the remainder will be divided into two subcommittees, who will submit their proposals to the Inner Cabinet, while the deliberations of the Inner Cabinet will be reported to the whole Cabinet. Mr Thorby holds the major Defence portfolio. SURPRISE IN SYDNEY. CHANGES INSPIRE LITTLE ENTHUSIASM. (Received This Day, 11.30 a.m.) SYDNEY, This Day. The “Sydney Morning Herald” says that in the division of the Defence portfolio, Mr Street will hold the major position of controlling the fighting services. The same newspaper adds that the limited nature of the changes has caused surprise. The reaction to the announcement is not' enthusiastic and the general opinion is that it will not satisfy critics of the Government within its own parties.