§ Mr. A. Edwardsasked the Secretary of State for War the number of persons employed in the supply department of the War Office prior to the formation of the Ministry of Supply; the numbers engaged at the present time; and the cost of the same in each period?
§ Mr. EdenI assume that by "supply department" my hon. Friend is referring to the Department of the Director-General of Munitions Production. Before the formation of the Ministry of Supply, the staff of this Department at the War Office numbered 675 and cost some £293,000 a year. The contracts work in connection with stores and equipment not taken over by the Ministry of Supply remains with the War Office, and the staff concerned in this work numbers 172 and costs some £43,000 a year. Other work formerly dealt with by the Director-General of Munitions Production at the War Office and not taken over by the Ministry of Supply has been spread among a number of different branches in the War Office, and it is not practicable to give comparable figures for number and cost of staff.