1
THE CHINA MAIL, MAY 8, 1940.
CABINET
ATTACKED
Mr. Attlee Bitterly Critical Of
Of "Old Brigade"
London, To-day.
MR. C. R. ATTLEE, LEADER of the Labour Opposi- tion, began his speech in the Commons debate yesterday by paying a warm tribute to the fight- ing forces, including the French and Nor- wegians.
He expressed sympathy for the people of Norway and also expressed admiration for the skill with which the difficult evacuation operation was carried out; we had had experience of this in the last war and it was rendered far more dif- ficult by the air arm.
"It is no use the Prime Minister, sary equipment was there, the neces- telling us not to come to hasty conclu-sary aircraft and the ships necessary sions; there are some very hasty con- to take them. clusions in those speeches.
"The Prime Minister has asked us to suspend judgment. I think it is very, difficult in the light of events to say that this campaign has been to our advantage, as the Premier said on Thursday.
"To-day the Prime Minister struck a different note-a good deal more of excuse than of explanation.
Duty To Nation
"I have heard stories of young boys with very little training being sent. In a country like Norway, with the rigours of its climate, you don't want to send young boys but older experi- enced men.
We had experience at the Darda- nelles of young lade being sent out in the great heat and they didn't last long; It was seasoned men who were wanted."
Where Was Secret Service
"No-one wants to give a handle to the enemy but we have a service and a duty to the nation to examine the Referring to the Germans anticipat- events that have occurred. We haveing any action we might have taken to face facts and we are not afraid to in laying mines by invading Norway, face facts.
Mr. Attlee asked what information "High hopes had been raised in the had we through our Intelligence Ser- speeches of Ministers, in the
vice? and on the wireless.
press
I think it extraordinarily ill-ad- vised that people should have had their spirits raised by accounts which encouraged them to imagine everything was doing wonderfully well. I think there should have been more guidance.
"We are paying the penalty because after great expectations there is na- turally disappointment.
"We realise we must bear in mind the requirements of the larger strategy but this was never Intend- ed to be a mere tip-and-run expe- dition.
Nazi Head Out The general view was given that Germany had at last put its head out to be hit and that there was a chance here of the campaign opening out; hence there is widespread disappoint-
ment.
"It is said that in this war there has never been initiative from our side and no real planning in anticipation of possible strokes against us.
"The Government had the Idea of blooking the Narvik route with mines. It must have been apparent that here was the greatest possi- blilty of a hit back by Germany, "The first question is, what provi- sion was made for that contingency? Cannot Understand
"The Prime Minister has said Ger- many planned this expedition with very great care over a long period. What care was exercised in the plan- ning of the Allies for defeating that stroke if it should come?
"We were informed In March that we had a force of 100,000 men ready to go to Finland. We were assured that these troops were fully prepared.
in
"If they were fully prepared every way we want to know what happened to them. If they were not, they may have escaped a serious dis- aster in Finland. ·
"What I cannot understand is the rapid dispersal of all these troops at the time when that was done.
"The Finnish war ended. In March and the Government · · decided · some time after that to lay mines off Nor-. way on April 8. I should have thought that in the event of having that in mind they would have kept in being this force in case of a Ger- man counter-atroke."
"We are told that we knew there
were troops and ships practising dis- embarkation and that there were four or five different places to which they might go.
MR. ATTLEE
Nazi Reinforcements
Wrong Judgments
"People find these men consistently wrong in their judgments. The same people who thought Hitler wouldn't attack Czecho-Slovakia, "who thought. Hitler could be appeased, seemed not to have realised that Hitler would at-. tack Norway.
"There seema everywhere a fallure to grip the drive, not only in the field of defence and foreign polloy but in England too.
"We are not organising the coun- try's resources. We have had eight months in which these things ought to have been done. We are not getting the organisation of food or manpow- er in the absence of effective leader- ship, and this is having a repercussion on the national morale.
Devotion To Colleagues
"A leading article in "The Times” There was also the stopping of re- says the Prime Minister's weakness inforcements. We could not have re- | has been his devotion to his collea- inforcements from the air but we gues, who are either failures or are had certainly got a more optimistic in need of a rest. note of what the Fleet could do from Mr. Churchill.
In considering the inception of the expedition, one of the vital fac- tors was how far you could be successful in preventing reinforce- ments.
There was not adequate intelligence and there was not the necessary con- [centration on essential objectives.
"I am asking whether at any time
there was not delay and discussion
when action was necessary.
criticised in
this
we.
destinies people
"In a life and death struggle cannot afford to have our in the hands of failures or needing a rest. (Opposition cheers)..
"1 am not sure of the Prime Minister's weakness. I think it is the particular weakness of mem- bers of the Government benches,." Concluding, Mr. Attlee said mem- bers of the Government benches had
seen failure after failure only shifted along those benches.
They had been content week after week with Ministers whom they They had al-
"I am not by any means satisfied, despite all that the Prime Minister has said, that the present War Cabinet knew to be failures. "I have no doubt that obtaining in-is an efficient instrument for conduct-lowed loyalty to the Chief Whip to telligence in Germany is very difficulting the war. (Hear, hear). but surely we have an
"It has been
overcome their loyalty to the real Intelligence
needs of the has
country. (Opposition Service in Norway. It is unbelievable House over and over again; it
cheers). that in Norway and Denmark there been criticised by men of wide ex-
"The House of Commons must take could have been these elaborate pre-perience in the press and on the plat-
There 18 a parations, which have gone on for so form; it is wrong in principle and to full responsibility.
widespread feeling in the country not many months, without anything being could only be justified by
that we shall lose this war-we shall known of them."
and it has not had that success."
Matter Of Bases
"I have been told that detailed plans for the seizure of Norway by the Ger- man General Staff had been known to us for many years. I want to know whether we were working out what could be done to counter those plans.
success,
Mr. Attlee declared frankly:
don't think it fair to put Mr. Chur- chill In the position of presiding at 'the Admiralty and being Chairman
of the Chiefs of Staff,--it la not fair that the man in charge of major strategy should be also in command of a particular unit.
"Mr. Churchill has very great dif- "The question which strikes me im-ficulties and it is not fair to put him mediately is the vital matter of bases. in an impossible position. The first condition should have been that bases should be reasonably safe from air and water attack.
all
"Surely the time factor was important. The Germans landed only a few troops at selected places but if they were given time it is clear they could bring up reinforcements which would make a landing very
difficult."
The vital thing was to obtain an air base. This was a risky op ration but risks had to be taken.
Winning The War
win this war-but that to win this war we want different people at the helm from those who led us into it." (Cheers)-Reuter.
CIRCUS OPENING ON SATURDAY
Due to the delayed arrival of the steamer bringing their animals, the opening of the Olympic Grand Circus at Mongkok has been unavoidably
"Our friends have been disheart-postponed to Saturday. ened, We have had a reverse but and we have had reverses before none of us is in the slightest degree shaken in his faith that we are going to win the war. (Cheers).
TREAT STOMACH AILMENTS NATURE'S
WAY.
"When we have reverses the essential thing is that we should learn from them. (Cheers), "I have no doubt whatever of the flatulence, lost appetite, furred tongue,
Stomach complaints, gastric troubles,
"what to know whether the Gov-courage and constancy of all the peo-bad breath, pains in the stomach, fool- ple of this country provided they are ing of over-fulness, may be corrected sure they are getting the right leader-with ship. (Opposition cheers).
ernment had a settled plan, or whe- thor. they acted hurriedly,
"Narvik, is really a secondary Stavanger or Trondheim. "It doesn't seem the Government realised the importance of the air weapon until after the event.
Lessons Of Finland
"I was disturbed by what the Prime Minister has said. Despite the lessons don't of Poland and Finland they seem to have realised the vital im- portance of protection from the air. Unless you could secure that, evacua- tion was certain,
"I ask whether the action was taken in time. The Germans, land- ed at Trondheim and It; was 10 days before we landed at Namsos and Aandalsness.
"The question is, how far had the Government, gone in making plans.
GOLDEN GRIFFIN STOMACH TEA
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"It is not Norway alone. Norway comes as the culmination of`many other discontents.
"People are saying that those mainly responsible for the conduct of affairs have had an almost uninter- rupted career. of failure. (Opposition cheers).
"Norway, Czecho-Slovakia, Po- land-overywhere the story is 'too
"Tato."
"The campaign in southern. Nor- The Prime Minister talks about Mr. Attlee sald he gathered some of way has been fallure. It is no missing buses. The Government has the troops were kept together. He good suggesting you can start again missed a number of buses sluce 1981; wanted to know whether these troops and come down, from Narvik; this is they have missed all the peace buses were adequate and whether the nécesTM a terribly difficult business.'
and caught the war bus.
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