Chapter 801 Broken Hill Industrial Base

The industrial aspect is not much different from Arthur's expectations, and this level of industry is enough to cope with future wars.

Even if the total steel production is slightly different, Australasia's industrial situation can expand at any time, which is basically not a big problem.

After Industry Minister Joy finished answering, Arthur looked at Agriculture Minister Maciei.

The strategic reserve of food is very important. This is something Arthur has made clear long ago.

"Your Majesty, as of the end of last year, our strategic grain reserves were 20.25 million tons, which can feed approximately 55 million people for two years." Agriculture Minister Maciei said with a proud face: "

Taking into account our relatively developed animal husbandry, our grain reserves can last for two to three years, and we continue to produce fresh grain every year. "

Although food reserves are very important, more food reserves are not always better. After all, Australasia currently has a population of only 40 million. If there are too many strategic grain reserves, it will actually be an economic cost.

"What is our current annual grain production?" Arthur asked.

“Your Majesty, as of last year, our total cultivated land area has exceeded 48 million acres, which is approximately equivalent to 40,000 square kilometers of land.

With such a huge and vast arable land area, our annual grain output has exceeded 28.25 million tons, and our average annual grain export exceeds 13 million tons. Speaking of news from the agricultural sector, Minister Maciei looked excited.

Not only do these data look good, they are also Minister Maciei’s current achievements.

For these cabinet members, this year is definitely the most important year in their political careers.

Because this summer, just a few months from now, there will be elections for the eighth Australasian cabinet government.

By then, whether they, the cabinet members, can still stay in their positions, or take a step further in the cabinet, will depend on the results of their work over the years.

The data in the agricultural sector are still relatively good, which also means that Maciei has great hopes of being re-elected.

As an official entering the cabinet for the first time, the probability that Minister Maciei wants to climb up is very small. This also destined that from the beginning, Minister Maciei’s plan was to be re-elected and then strive for greater possibilities in the next term.

After hearing Minister Maciei's report, Arthur's expression did not change much, but he was still quite satisfied inside.

Much of the reason the agriculture sector's figures are so good relies on the successful development of the Murray River catchment.

Speaking of which, the Murray River Basin has been developed for a long time, and countless areas of cultivated land have been reclaimed.

With these superior lands, Australasia's food production has indeed experienced considerable growth.

Moreover, in addition to the cultivated land in the mainland, states in Southeast Asia have also cultivated quite vast areas of cultivated land.

After all, Southeast Asia also has advantages compared to Australasia itself, that is, food can be harvested three times a year.

Java, which currently has the most developed grain industry, has contributed one-tenth of Australasia's total grain output, which is enough to show how exaggerated the agricultural situation of Java, which has fertile land, is.

But for Arthur, such data is not outrageous. After all, in later generations, the island of Java could support a population of more than 100 million people.

Now the population of Java Island has barely exceeded one million. For Java Island, it is simply easy to feed these people.

"The next step of the Ministry of Agriculture is to develop agriculture on Java Island to a greater extent." Arthur thought for a while and then ordered: "At present, our cultivated land scale and food production are basically sufficient. The next step is to use smaller Develop food production as much as possible at any cost to prepare for possible wars in the future.

The food in Java can be harvested three times a year, making it the best food-growing area in the country.

The agricultural department will come up with an agricultural development plan for Java as soon as possible. I hope to develop Java into one of the most important food-producing areas in Australasia, producing at least one-fifth of Australasia's food. "

Australasia's total annual food production is approximately enough to feed a population of 85 million people. If the island of Java contributed one-fifth, it would be able to feed almost 17 million people.

To be honest, this is still very demanding for Java Island. After all, the population of Java Island has just exceeded one million, and it takes 1 million people to produce food for 17 million people. This is what can be achieved on land like Java Island, which has three crops a year.

If we are in Australasia, relying on current agricultural technology, it is still very difficult to produce rations for 17 million people with 1 million people.

Even with the help of various mechanical equipment, this plan is definitely not easy to complete.

Of course, for the current Minister Maciei, Arthur's request is a very important test for him.

You know, this year is the period of change of cabinet government. If Minister Maciei comes up with a pretty perfect plan, will Arthur let Minister Maciei continue to be the Minister of Agriculture to implement this perfect plan?

Compared with someone who is not familiar with the plan, someone like Minister Maciei who personally proposed the plan is definitely more suitable to implement the plan.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Please rest assured that I will definitely come up with the most perfect plan in the shortest possible time." Upon hearing Arthur's request, Minister Maciei stood up quickly and promised with excitement. .

Others don't know that this is Minister Maciei's best chance for re-election. As long as Arthur's mission can be completed perfectly, Minister Maciei's re-election will become a certainty.

But alas, Arthur will certainly not issue tasks to everyone. This also means that if most cabinet members want to be re-elected, all they have to do is show their achievements.

"Since the country's finances are relatively good at present, it is time to increase the proportion of our annual military expenditure." When the meeting was about to end, Arthur looked at everyone and said.

"Your Majesty, how much will the proportion of military expenditures be increased?" When talking about increasing military expenditures, Defense Secretary Thomas immediately couldn't sit still and stood up and asked.

For Secretary Thomas, an increase in military spending is certainly a good thing. More importantly, Arthur's statement seems to mean that the proportion of military expenditures will be increased every year, which also means that the Ministry of National Defense has sufficient funds to replace weapons for all armies.

"What is the approximate military budget of the Ministry of Defense this year?" Arthur asked.

Arthur had no plan in mind as to how much military spending would be increased. But the time has come to 1932. Now that the world situation is completely different from history, it is still necessary to increase the proportion of military expenditures as soon as possible and prevent wars.

"Your Majesty, the military budget of the Ministry of National Defense this year accounts for 1% of the total fiscal expenditure, which is approximately 242.5 billion Australian dollars." Defense Secretary Thomas replied.

"Let's increase it to 31% for the time being." Arthur ordered: "This 9% ratio will be deducted from other departments. The current goal is to make our army as strong as possible."

Although it seems that the proportion is only 9%, the actual funding is as high as 8.11 million Australian dollars, which can be regarded as a medium-sized expenditure.

Looking at the other ministers who had toothaches, Arthur said angrily: "This year's total financial budget will be increased by another 10 million. Compared with last year, I think our financial situation will be better this year."

Although each department will still have to squeeze out some funds if the budget is increased by another 10 million, it is much better than not increasing the budget.

After hearing what Arthur said, all departments stopped their attempts to complain and sat down solemnly.

Although Arthur increased this year's budget in just a few words, Minister Hunter had no intention of objecting.

After all, this year’s original fiscal budget was 27.5 billion Australian dollars, and an additional 10 million would only amount to 37.5 billion Australian dollars.

Last year's fiscal revenue reached 3.7 billion Australian dollars. As long as there is a slight increase this year, it will exceed this number.

As long as the balance of revenue and expenditure can be maintained on the basis of increasing military spending, Secretary Hunter's mission has been accomplished.

Countries are also constantly increasing their military expenditures because of the naval arms race. If Australasia does not keep up, it will inevitably suffer a hidden loss in the war.

"How is the construction of our Broken Hill Industrial Base going?" When the meeting was about to end, Arthur remembered the second largest industrial base in Australasia, which is the new industry in the Capital District. base.

"The second phase of construction of the Broken Hill Industrial Base has been successfully completed and put into production. It is expected to reach maximum production by the end of this year." Industry Minister Joy reported: "

So far, construction and production at the Broken Hill industrial site are going well and it is expected to become the second largest industrial site in the country this year, second only to the Leonora industrial site. "

Arthur nodded and understood the reason why Minister Joy said he could expand industrial scale and total steel production at any time.

Although the Broken Hill Industrial Base was not as large as the Leonora Industrial Base when it was planned, it was definitely a large industrial base.

It is originally laid out in the west and east of Leonora Industrial Base, and because it is located in the Capital District, Broken Hill Industrial Base will welcome more workers.

For this industrial base, the industrial sector has invested up to 72 million Australian dollars.

Of course, the results in exchange are also very sufficient. At maximum production, the Broken Hill Industrial Base can accommodate thousands of factories and provide more than 500,000 jobs.

When war breaks out, the Broken Hill Industrial Base can be transformed into a military production base as long as the government orders it.

Whether it is the production of various weapons and equipment, guns and ammunition, or various scarce materials related to war, Broken Hill Industrial Base is capable of doing it.

Both the Leonora Industrial Base and the Broken Hill Industrial Base are located inside the Australian continent, and there is no need to worry about enemy aircraft bombing.

When the war broke out, these two regions were the two hearts of Australasia, one on the left and the other on the right. They continued to produce a large number of industrial products and created a steady stream of wealth for Australasia.

"Let the Broken Hill Industrial Base enter maximum production status as soon as possible and quickly produce more war reserve materials for us." Arthur ordered: "

In addition, the problem of material transportation around the two industrial bases also needs to be solved. When the war breaks out, these two industrial bases will produce a large amount of industrial products for us, and we need an excellent transportation environment to transport these industrial products out of the country for sale. "

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