§ 77. Commander BELLAIRSasked the Under-Secretary of State for Air if he can give the approximate total expenditure of the French Government on army, navy and civil aviation as provided in the latest estimates?
§ Mr. LEACHThe French Budget credits for the year 1924 are understood to be for the Army (including Colonial) aviation, 421,287,639 francs; for Navy aviation, 105,540,081 francs; and for the aviation services, including civil aviation subsidies, administered by the Under-Secretary of State for Air in the Ministry of Public Works, 138,463,350 francs. In addition, a proportion of the provision for general services of the Army and Navy is to be attributed to the requirements of naval and military aviation. Whilst it is not possible to estimate this proportion with accuracy, it is clear that it represents a very substantial amount and that the actual total expenditure on naval and military aviation in France is therefore materially in excess of the figures given above.
§ Commander BELLAIRSWill the Ministry direct the attention of the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the fact that, for about one-third of the expenditure which we incur, France gets about 10 times the strength?
§ Mr. LAMBERTWhat is the total expenditure of France on all kinds of aviation?