BLOCKADE SUCCESS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 4 October 1940, Page 3

BLOCKADE SUCCESS

DURING FIRST YEAR OF WAR BRITISH MINISTER’S SURVEY. ENEMY SHORT OF VITAL SUPPLIES. (British Official Wireless.) _ RUGBY, October 2. The Minister’of Economic Warfare, Dr Hugh Dalton, spoke of the successful work of his department today when addressing the National Defence and Public Interests Committee. The blockade, he said, had achieved remarkable success in the first year of war. Both Germany and Italy were seriously deficient in such key commodities as oil, alloys for hardening steel, rubber, lead, copper, and textiles, without which is it impossible to carry on modern war. Though Germany had benefited by the loot she had obtained in the conquered territory, he said, the advantage was only temporary, and was offset by the loss of the substantial imports formerly received from occupied countries, which were now subject to blockade. The stocks thus seized, though larger than he, liked, were not large enough to add more than some months’ supply to the enemy’s resources. Speaking of surpluses, the Minister said he felt certain that neutral countries would understand that it was contrary to both their own interests and the policy of the British Government that they should accumulate large stocks of goods needed by the enemy. He added that a committee of Ministers had completed an exhaustive survey of the principal areas affected, and also of the principal commodities of which large surpluses exist. “The lines of the policy to be pursued,” he said, “are clear. To succeed fully they require effective co-opera-tion by a number of countries, notably the British Commonwealth of Nations, the United States, and the LatinAmerican Republics. I see it as the development of a beginning of economic planning on a world-wide scale. How much more hopeful such a prospect seems than all the futile fantasies of Dr Funk.”

Speaking of oil supplies, which he described as a key commodity, Dr Dalton reminded his audience that the German war effort in 1918 died out when supplies had fallen to one million tons. Today’s powerful and highly integrated but brittle Nazi economy would have a much higher die-out figure. Dr Dalton added that his experts told him that the Germans had now nearly exhausted the oil stocks they had captured in the occupied territories. . Outlining the food situation, the Minister said that in Europe there would be no famine this winter; there was enough food to go round if it was properly shared out. Although he had given much thought to the subject and had the benefit of much expert advice, he had been unable to discover a satisfactory watertight scheme of guarantees against food imports into any part of enslaved Europe finding their way into Nazi bellies. Proposals to relax the blockade seemed to him to be exceedingly untimely. “Night after night,” he added. “German airmen scatter bombs, many indiscriminately, over London and other parts of our country. They return after killing many of our women and children to enjoy excellent breakfasts in the German air force messes just across the Channel in occupied France, Belgium and Holland. They feed on food stolen from the French, the Belgians, and the Dutch. Why should we put more food into the occupied countries for them to steal? Why should we be fighting for our lives and, while still exercising the command of the sea route, be expected to provide better meals for these Nazi fly-by-nights?”