The Arms Commission's Findings • The report of the Royal
Commission on the Manufac- ture of Arms is completed. As was rather to be expected, the Commission' is said to declare against nationalisation. but it advocates the fullest Government control over all businesses bearing on munition-production the Moment war breaks out, and the interesting suggestion is made that munition-making concerns should be turned into public utility companies—which is in many industries the normal alternative to full nationalisation. Com- ment can more profitably be made on these recom- mendations when the full text of the report is available. But if the Press predictions are accurate, the find- ings are such as to justify fully the appointment of the Commission. Advocates of full nationalisation will be disappointed, and the adoption of a nationalisation policy in France Will be cited as an example of the right course to take. But the 'French Government has only taken power to nationalise ; it has made little use of the power so far. And under a public utility system arms manufacture would be a very different thing from the private manufacture of today.
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