The Waikato Times SATURDAY, JULY 24, 1937. A SIGNIFICANT MOVE

Waikato Times, Volume 121, Issue 20254, 24 July 1937, Page 6

The Waikato Times SATURDAY, JULY 24, 1937. A SIGNIFICANT MOVE

The British Government has embarked on the largest re-arma-ment programme ever undertaken in times of peace. The expenditure will be so heavy—the programme is to be spread over five yeais —that special financial provisions have bad to be made. The original plan, known as the National Defence Contribution, would hav6 taxed profits on a graduated scale in order to bring in £20,000,000 in a full year, and it was proposed to borrow £80,000,000 for defence services. This is a most striking departure from precedent. The Mother Country has always met the cost of the defence services out of revenue, but, after some years in a futile effort to induce the nations of Europe to disarm, involving reductions of British defence forces to a level that was dangerous, there is now nn imperative need to bring all three branches up to the highest standard in the matter of equipment and personnel. There was much opposition to the proposed new tax, more particularly to the way it was to be imposed, and as a result the new Prime Minister announced that it would be withdrawn. “ Industry,” he said, “does not challenge the propriety of finding the amount I want,” and he added that the tax would be imposed'in a different manner. It is significant that the Parliamentary Labour Party has decided, “in view of the international situation,” not to vote against the estimates for the fighting services. That means practically a unanimous House, and should convince those who commenced this mad race for re-armament that Great Britain means to mobilise resources such as few nations can command in order to ensure that her forces are adequate for any task likely to be imposed on them. The American Ambassador, speaking at a function in London, said that he believed “a tremendous and valuable contribution to the peace of the world has been made by the British Empire and ourselves patiently re-arming.” There have been indications that this policy has deeply impressed some of the European countries. If any of them had counted on the Opposition hindering the British programme that hope has now vanished. There is no division of opinion at Home regarding the need for stronger defence services, and the resources are available to provide them. Those who would not consent to the limitation of arms by agreement must now face the possibility of smashing, or weakening, their financial position, in an effort to maintain the pace. The hope is that sooner or later they will see the economic foolishness of that policy and give evidence of a willingness to agree to some limitation.