§ 35. Commander BELLAIRSasked the Secretary of State for Air if he will state what was the expenditure of the United States on Army and Navy Air Forces for 1928–29; and what is the amount submitted for 1929–30?
§ The SECRETARY of STATE for AIR (Sir Samuel Hoare)As regards expenditure on the United States Navy and Army, perhaps the hon. and gallant Member would be good enough to put down questions to my right hon. Friends the First Lord and the Secretary of State for War. As regards air expenditure, there is, of course, no separate air budget in the United States, but, including what is in that country officially termed "indirect" expenditure, i.e., expenditure which is not shown under separate air headings but embedded in the main Naval and Military votes, the figures may be taken, when converted into sterling at current rates of exchange, to be approximately as under:—
I should add that there were certain supplementary estimates for air expenditure in the year 1928–29 which are included in the above total and it is possible, if not probable, that there will be similar supplementaries in the course of 1929–30 which will augment the provisional figure given above for this latter year.
£ 1928–29 22,000,000 1929–30 24,500,000
§ Commander BELLAIRSIs the right hon. Gentleman not including in that a vast quantity of civil expenditure for Post Office mails, etc., considering that the Journal of the Royal United Service 1120 Institution gives figures showing that expenditure on the Army and Navy totalled up to about £13,000,000 in 1928–29, instead of the £22,000,000 which he has given?
§ Sir S. HOARENo, Sir; civil aviation figures are not included.