A word more on the co-operation of the military in
A.R.P. work. Desirable as this is (as I have contended in this column lately) on general grounds, there appears to be one unlooked-for obstacle. Trade unionists are reluctant to see soldiers called in to do work which some of the still considerable army of the unemployed could undertake. That, I believe, is the reason why the services of the Pioneer Corps have been offered for the strictly limited period of three weeks. As a matter of fact the Commander-in-Chief Home Forces has indicated his readiness to release soldiers so far as practicable for any emergency work that may be needed. The trade unionists' contention, to which Ministers like Mr. Bevin must pay special respect, is intelligible but not convincing. Except for such tasks as clearing debris, for which the unemployed are in fact to be used, most forms of A.R.P. work call for some specialised training. The soldiers, it is true, have probably not had that, but working under discipline they would be more serviceable than completely untrained unemployed. And some sections, for example the R.E. and the R.A.M.C., have precisely the training needed.
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