§ MR. MIDDLEMOREI beg to ask the First Lord of the Admiralty if he will state definitely the size, horse-power, anticipated speed, and armament of the sixteen destroyers of the 1908–9 programme; and to state the size, horsepower, speed, and armament of the "Tribal" destroyers.
§ MR. MCKENNAThe figures for the sixteen destroyers of the 1908–9 programme are: Displacement, 930–1,030 tons; speed, 27 knots; armament, 5–12-pounder guns, two torpedo tubes. Those for the early "Tribal" destroyers are: Displacement, 950–975 tons; speed, 33 knots; armament, 3–12-pounder guns, two torpedo tubes. Those for the later "Tribal" destroyers are: Displacement, 1,050–1,100 tons; speed, 33 knots; armament, 2–4-inch guns, two torpedo tubes. The figures with regard to the displacement of the later "Tribal" class and the new programme destroyers, and the speed of the latter, are estimates 1660 only. The estimated horse-power for the 27-knot destroyers is 12,000, the contract conditions for the "Tribal" destroyers did not provide for the horsepower to be measured, and no official record of the power on contractors' trial was obtained.
§ MR. MIDDLEMOREI thank the right hon. Gentleman for this very full information.