"The repercussions on industry of the defence programme will inevitably be considerable," says the Westminster Bank Review in an article on "Industry and Defence" in its May issue. "In the short run they may appear beneficial," the article says, "for new employment is created, but the longer term effects may be serious."
The chief burden of meeting defence needs, it is pointed out, falls on a comparatively narrow range of trades. An examination of the figures of unemployment in the key industries leads to the conclusion that in the motor and aircraft, explosives, and scientific instrument trades activity is already above the normal maximum; in general and marine engineering and in the metal trades there is a small margin; while in constructional work, shipbuilding, iron and steel, and wool textiles the danger of inadequate labour resources is not yet imminent, It is pointed out that the unemployment figures make no distinction between skilled and unskilled workmen, and it is known that a fairly high average figure often conceals—may, indeed, be caused by—a shortage of skilled workmen at some essential stage. The lack of skilled men, which is undoubtedly already serious in many trades, may, moreover, be aggravated by conscription, although the proportion of skilled men under twenty-one is small,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.