Liberal Proposal to Unite All Fighting Services Rejected London, Mar, 27.
In the House of Commons, To-day, Sir Robert Hutchinson (Liberal) urged the need for unified control of the Navy, Army and Air Forces.
The Premier, Mr. Stanley Baldim, replying, said that he felt sure that all the members of the House were agreed upon the general principles of economy, avoidance of duplication and efficiency. One of. the great differences was how to achieve those ends, which they all desired. Administrative over-centalization was an evil as great as decentralization. We had a number of Ministers dealing with Agriculture, Health, Labour, the Post Office and so forth, and our ex-were dealt with by the Office, Colonial Office, Dominions fies and Indic, Ofes, any \dministrative experience would con-for one moment amalgamation of any of these groups of offices of Civil Service, "You. would have over-centralization and would inevitably lose your grip on the whole," he declared, An Intolerable Burden must be remembered, the Premier continued, that despite all developments up to date, the work of the Navy was still on the seas, of the Army on land and of the Air Force in the a That being 80, each of thes services had its' own of personnel, armaments, supplies and organiza tion, The' Government's plan was that all three services acted on com-amon principles. They carried out a single policy and their various functions and responsibilities were actively thes three departments would be a very, honey burden upon a single Miniater and to anyone-who was not super-man would be intolprabl Inthe Cabinet and in Pavlia would have to speak knowledge diet Titce Ministers of the three' separate departments, Our arm: ments wore maintained at the very minimum to-day necessary to meet the obligations of our Empire, They were little more than the police and a shield under which we could organize ourselves, in case (which God forbid!) there' should again be war, But should a great expansion again become necessary, it seemed to him n single department or single control would inevitably beale dawn,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.