Chapter 564 Minister Martin’s Ambition

As the second year of the popularity of wireless radio stations, Arthur's implementation speech this Christmas has also attracted a lot of anticipation.

According to estimates from the Propaganda Department, current radio wave signals have covered almost all major cities, covering a total population of more than 11 million people.

This also means that after a year, Arthur's Christmas speech this time has no problem attracting millions of people to listen.

Because it can be seen from the sales of radios this year that the popularity of radios in Australasia is not low.

Of course, a big part of this is the low price of the radio. Especially the mineral radio with the simplest structure, the cheapest one even only requires one or two months' salary, and ordinary people can buy it with gritted teeth.

While giving the speech, Arthur also had to lament how quickly time passed.

It feels like the time is still short, but in fact it has been more than 20 years since I came to Australia.

However, when we think of Australasia’s current achievements, more than 20 years of hard work have not been in vain.

A few days after Christmas, Arthur convened a new round of cabinet meetings to formulate a plan for the new year, that is, 1.

As the saying goes, if you want to get rich, you must first build roads. Arthur attaches great importance to the construction of roads and railways, so the first topic mentioned is also about the transportation sector.

Judging from the current railway construction situation in Australasia, the industrial railway, northern railway and central railway have been completed, and the total railway mileage has reached 43,000 kilometers, which seems to be quite developed.

But if compared with other major powers, especially when Australasia has such a large land area, it still seems a bit behind.

Let’s look at an exaggerated figure first. In 1850, the total mileage of railways in the United States was as high as 18,000 kilometers. Now it has exceeded 430,000 kilometers, which is 13 times that of Australasia.

Although the United States has a more developed economy and a larger industry, its land area is still smaller than that of Australasia, which is evident from its backward railway mileage.

Even the current railway mileage in Australasia only ranks sixth in the world, less than 1,000 kilometers longer than France.

The area of ​​mainland France is only 550,000 square kilometers, and the area of ​​Australasia is more than ten times the area of ​​mainland France.

Such a comparison shows that Australasia's transportation construction is still very backward, and the construction of railways and highways is still the main topic at present.

Arthur looked at Transport Minister Martin Pospisil and asked: "Minister Martin, what are the transport department's plans for the new year?"

Understanding that this was a test for himself, Minister Martin did not dare to be careless or delay, and replied cautiously: "Your Majesty, in addition to maintaining and consolidating our current railways and highways, I think we should continue to build Only by expanding the total railway mileage to 50,000 kilometers within five years and to 100,000 kilometers within 20 years can we initially meet our demand for railway transportation."

Arthur raised his eyebrows when he heard the completely different opinions from those of the previous transport ministers, and asked with interest: "Do you think our railway mileage needs to be 100,000 kilometers to be enough?"

"No, Your Majesty." Minister Martin explained: "It's not that one hundred thousand kilometers is enough, but one hundred thousand kilometers can initially meet our needs."

"Oh?" Arthur became more interested and asked with a smile: "You know, the current total length of railways in Australasia is only 43,000 kilometers, and it took more than 20 years to build. It will take you almost the same time , to build the remaining 57,000 kilometers of railway?"

"It is undeniable that this is a difficult problem, Your Majesty. But railways are very important to the development of the country, and the total mileage of railways in the United States is as high as 430,000 kilometers. If we do not want to fall behind others in this regard, we must continue to improve our railways Mileage is necessary,” Minister Martin explained.

"Furthermore, the development of the Murray River Basin also requires the construction of a large number of railways and the expansion of the industrial base. Your Majesty's newly established Capital Territory and Northern Australia also require the construction of a large number of railways. Australasia is a vast country Yes, we have no reason not to build a longer railway, Your Majesty."

Arthur nodded with satisfaction, agreeing with Minister Martin's enterprising ideas.

Let’s not discuss the huge 430,000 kilometers of railways in the United States. Even other colonies in the British Empire, such as Canada and India, have more railway miles than Australasia.

Although a large part of these railways were built by the British, their purpose was only for their own interests.

But it cannot be denied that these railway miles have played a vital role in the economic development of Canada and India.

If Australasia wants to develop better, it is necessary to build more railways.

Especially since a large number of civilians cannot afford to fly on planes and airships, trains have become the only option for most civilians to travel to distant areas on land.

This can not only speed up economic flows between various regions in Australasia and promote economic development, but also improve population mobility, which is also very helpful to the tourism industry in Australasia.

"The Ministry of Transport will come up with a plan as soon as possible, as well as the funds and manpower needed for the railway construction plan." Arthur did not express his agreement or disapproval, but what he said has proved Arthur's point of view.

"Yes, I will give it to you as soon as possible, Your Majesty." Minister Martin nodded excitedly, very excited that he had won Arthur's support.

The reason why Arthur agreed with Minister Martin's idea of ​​building the railway mileage to 50,000 kilometers in five years and to 100,000 kilometers in 20 years was actually because he saw the impact of Australasia and other powerful countries. The gap in rail mileage.

Although the demand for railway mileage due to population is not as high as that of other powerful countries, the population will always grow and cannot always be maintained at more than 20 million.

Moreover, the vast territory of Australasia will naturally have more demand for railways, and there will be no disadvantages in building railways, which is very important for the development of a country.

Moreover, if rounded up to 100,000 kilometers in 20 years, the average number of railways constructed per year is only 2,850 kilometers, which is promising for the current railway construction needs.

After all, most of the land in Northern Australia and the Capital Territory, which urgently need to build railways, is plain. Construction will not only save manpower and material resources, but also save time.

Now that various mechanical equipment are sufficiently developed, it is challenging to build 2,850 kilometers of railways a year, but it can still be accomplished with hard work.

Furthermore, even if it is not realistic to build 2,850 kilometers of railways in one year, it will only take a few years at night.

However, Minister Martin's aggressive approach to railway construction is something that some current cabinet members do not possess.

In terms of national development, although some conservative officials are also very needed, progressive officials are also very important.

I have to admit that some officials are still too conservative for the development of the country. National construction requires a balance between conservatism and progress. This is why the political arena needs constant infusion of fresh blood.

At present, Minister Martin, who first entered the cabinet two and a half years ago, is undoubtedly that enterprising official.

As long as Minister Martin can make some political achievements in the transportation department during the remaining year and a half of his term, Arthur would not mind letting him serve another term to see if Minister Martin can talk on paper or if he really has ideas and abilities.

Some officials tend to be conservative, which is inevitable for any country and government.

Especially in Australasia now, as long as there are no problems during the term and you spend your term diligently, you can hope to obtain a knighthood, which no official can refuse.

As the saying goes, if you don't do something, you can't go wrong. If you make mistakes at work because of some extreme ideas, you will not only lose the title you are hoping to obtain, but you may even become a sinner in Australasia. This is what these officials say. Fear is also the reason why they become conservative.

You know, in the history of Australasia, there has never been an official who made a big mistake at work, which also means that if they make a mistake, they are likely to be the first to be recorded in history.

It is impossible for these officials to bear this kind of long-term infamy. As the saying goes, the higher you stand, the more you cherish your feathers. This is also the real reason for the increase in conservatives in the political arena.

How to effectively deal with such a situation? The best way is to increase the vitality of the political arena and continuously inject fresh blood.

This is why Australasian Prime Ministers can only serve two terms and Cabinet members can only serve three terms.

Even the meritorious Prime Minister Kent will have to step down as Prime Minister after this round of term to pursue other cabinet positions, or take a temporary break.

Even if Arthur believes in Minister Kent again, there is no reason for him to be re-elected for a third term.

After all, it is neither a war period nor a huge crisis. There is no reason for re-election, and the gains outweigh the losses.

It has been nearly 11 years since Minister Kent started. Counting the remaining year and a half of his term, he has served as Prime Minister for 12 years, experiencing the main development period of Australasia.

Under such circumstances, in fact, experiencing the development of Australasia in different capacities can actually gain more.

As the saying goes, the authorities are obsessed but the bystanders know clearly. Sometimes, as a bystander, you can see the shortcomings in the development of the government.

Furthermore, Australasian politics cannot always be dominated by one person, as factions and forces can easily breed.

Although it is controllable at present, it does not prevent future monarchs from facing this situation.

Arthur also has to consider the next monarch. It is not in the interest of the monarch to cultivate a high-prestige meritorious service in Australasia, even if it is a crony that Arthur trusts very much.

Although this truth is a bit too realistic, it is the same for the monarchy of any country.

Officials in a monarchy must always serve the monarch. If an official whose prestige is equal to that of the monarch appears, who should the other officials listen to?

The current Arthur can completely suppress it, but what about the next monarch? The development of a country cannot avoid such problems. The best way is to avoid the emergence of high-prestige officials as much as possible.

The second update of 3200 words, please vote for me and support!

Thousands of dollars per day today, it has been updated, please vote for me, please support!