§ MR. HAROLD COX (Preston)To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total debt incurred upon the South African War; and what was the annual interest payable upon that debt, so far as it remained undischarged, in the years 1902–3, 1903–4, 1904–5, 1905–6, 1906–7, and 1907–8, respectively.
(Answered by Mr. Lloyd-George.) The total amount of debt created for the War was £159,000,000. The amount of interest paid on war debt in 1902–3 was £4,205,000. The estimated amount payable in 1903–4 was £4,328,000; but, by The Finance Act, 1903, the interest on the war debt became payable as part of the permanent charge of the debt, and it cannot therefore be distinguished for subsequent years.