Mr. Duff Cooper's Recall
The recall of Mr. Duff Cooper from Singapore, where he held the position of Resident Minister with Cabinet rank, cannot reasonably be regarded as an admission by the Government that he proved a failure. That affairs have been mishandled at Singapore and in the whole area of operations of which it is the centre cannot be denied. Mr. Duff Cooper himself has been severely taken to task by sections of the Australian and the British Press, but it is only fair to remember that however hard it may be to justify his promotion to a highly important Cabinet post at the centre of the Far Eastern war, he cannot possibly be held responsible for the inadequate organisation at Singapore, for the omissions at Penang,_ or for the military losses in and around Malaya. The' local Press has referred to him most appre- ciatively. At the moment of his recall, when he was asked to "wind up his mission and return home," he had only held his office for about 'three weeks, during which time a series of measures undertaken to improve the civil defence organisation were just beginning to take effect. There are at present no data in this ,country, and probably none in Australia, by which he could be judged either efficient or inefficient. But his recall is perfectly intelligible on other grounds. Since he was appointed General Wavell has been given overriding powers in the South- West Pacific conferred on him by the United States and the Netherlands East Indies as well as by the British Government.
It can readily be understood that the presence at Singapore of a political representative responsible only to the War Cabinet might be found incompatible with General Wave11's Command, which he exercises on behalf of several Governments. The changed situation fully explains Mr. Duff Cooper's return.
