§ Mr. FALLEasked the First Lord of the Admiralty if several of His Majesty's ships are shortly to be sold to be broken up; and, if so, whether he would allow one of these ships to be broken up by the Department, and thereby find work for the workmen of this country and save the taxpayers' money?
§ The FIRST LORD of the ADMIRALTY (Mr. McKenna)The reply to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. Four or five obsolete vessels will be offered for sale by auction at Portsmouth Dockyard on 12th July. Of these, at least the two larger and more valuable ships for scrapping will be broken up in this country. There are no objections to the principle of breaking up ships in His Majesty's dockyards, which exist for the building and maintenance of the Fleet. It is not considered that such a practice would result in any financial gain.