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THE BASIS OF NAVY ESTIMATES.

Previous Reference: Cabinet 39 (26), Con- clusion 4(d)).

6. The Cabinet had before them & Most Secret

Memorandum by the Chancellor of the Exchequer

on the subject of the Easis of Navy Estimates

(Paper C.P.-169 (28)), proposing that the Committee

of Imperial Defence should be asked to advise

the Cabinet upon the general assumptions which

should now govern our preparations for war, with

particular reference to the Estimates of the

Fighting Services; and further suggesting that,

when these general assumptions were settled, the

correspondence attached to the Memorandum should

be referred to the Naval Programme Committee.

which was recently constituted a Standing Sub-

Committee of the Committee of Imperial Defence:

also that certain questions relating to anti-

aircraft guns for the Fleet should be referred

to the Committee of Imperial Defense.

In the course of the discussion the First

Lord of the Admiralty suggested that the question

of detail raised in the correspondence between the

Treasury and the Admiralty should be discussed at

the full Committee of Imperial Defence before being

referred to any Sub-Committee, but the Chancellor

of the Exchequer preferred his own proposal.

The Cabinet agreed

(a) That the Committee of Imperial Defence

should be asked to advise the Cabinet upon the general assumptions which should now govern our preparations for war, with particular reference to the Estimates of the Fighting Services:

(b) That the Committee of Imperial Defence

should also be asked to consider certain questions relating to anti-aircraft guns for the Fleet.

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